Michelle Davies | The Journal Gazette
Embassy Theatre is among local venues awaiting the return of touring performers. In the meantime, it has partnered with some local organizations and artists.
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Foellinger Theatre has plans in place for this summer so it is ready to go whether or not social distanced seating is still a factor.
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The renovated Eagles Theatre in Wabash had been open only for a few weeks when the pandemic hit. Previous Next
Friday, February 19, 2021 1:00 am
Venues look toward future
COREY MCMAKEN | The Journal Gazette
After a two-year renovation project, the 115-year-old Eagles Theatre in Wabash opened Feb. 29 with grand plans for a year of concerts, movies and other events to show off the historic space. Less than three weeks later it was shuttered as the pandemic brought arts and entertainment events to a halt across the world.
Talks between Phil, musicians at standstill
COREY MCMAKEN | The Journal Gazette
After months of suspended concerts, musician furloughs and several labor charges, contract talks between Fort Wayne Philharmonic and its players continue to idle.
Musicians say they are being asked to abandon a collective bargaining agreement that has been decades in the making in favor of changes that will gut the orchestra. The Philharmonic says it needs to take steps to reduce its budget moving forward, including a reduction in the number of full-time player positions.
“Ensuring a financially sustainable future requires adjusting the business structure so the Philharmonic can live within its means,” the organization says in an email provided to The Journal Gazette by director of marketing and public relations Emily Shannon after a request for a phone interview with management was declined.
Briefs
Musicians labor charge dismissed
The National Labor Relations Board has dismissed an unfair labor practice charge filed against the Fort Wayne Philharmonic by the American Federation of Musicians Local 58 and Fort Wayne Musicians Association.
Philharmonic musicians will appeal the dismissal of this charge, a statement from the Philharmonic Players Association said Tuesday.
The charge alleged the Philharmonic management violated federal law by furloughing musicians in August. The labor relations board dismissed the charge Friday.
Bass Road project wins county praise
The Allen County commissioners received the 2020 Indiana Association of County Commissioners Achievement Award for Outstanding Team Effort.
The commissioners were recognized for completing the first two phases of the Bass Road Corridor project over a 10-year period.
Verbatim: Philharmonic musicians to appeal
Musicians of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic issued the following Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021 –
On January 22, Musicians of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic learned of the decision by the Regional Director of Region 25 of the National Labor Relations Board to dismiss their Unfair Labor Practice filed on October 5, 2020. The ULP charged that Philharmonic management s furlough of musicians in August of 2020 constituted a unilateral change to the terms of the collective bargaining agreement between the Philharmonic and musicians, and was therefore illegal.
Philharmonic musicians will appeal the dismissal of this charge.
Since furloughing musicians in August, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic has failed to produce a substantive plan to present music to our community or employ musicians. While orchestras across the country have found ways to creatively serve their audiences during the pandemic, the Philharmonic has chosen silence over performance.
Facing the music
Campbell MacDonald
“Music accompanies the stories of our past, the pages we write in the present, and the dreams we have for the future.”
I contributed these words to a commemorative program book in early 2019, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic. They reflect a passion and ethos shared by every musician in our orchestra: a duty to serve our community, while nurturing and growing our region s storied musical legacy.
Just two years later, this legacy is at risk. Philharmonic leadership has taken a destructive negotiating position that would degrade our city s orchestra and force musicians to leave Fort Wayne to seek careers elsewhere.