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The Creative Economy is Alive and Well in Lamoille County, Vermont
Dibden Center for the Arts kicked off its summer season with 4 local Dance Studios presenting their end of season finales. The Enchanted Woods Wellness Center http://enchantedwoodswellness.com/ of Morrisville, Artistic Director Alexis George Owen; Ballet Wolcott, of Wolcott, http://www.balletwolcott.com/, which is a “collaboration between three women, Helene Nilsen, Brandy Ofciarcik-Perez, and Avi Waring”; Stowe Dance Academy, http://stowedance.com/ Helena Sullivan Director; and The Ballet School of Vermont, http://www.theballetschoolonline.com/ formerly ‘The Ballet School and Dance Arts’ with Maryellen Vickery Artistic Director. The growth of these studios has been very exciting to watch over the last decade, with Ballet Wolcott reviving the former Wolcott Ballet which was featured in the Smithsonian Magazine in 1995 http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/ballet-abstract.html#ixzz1PAK30uQC
Attendance for these events drew 3700 people to Johnson State College’s fabulous Dibden Center for the Arts. Featuring around 460 dancers, and including the occasional paid professional, including recent NYC transplant Lighting Designer Jeffery Salzberg http://www.jeffsalzberg.com/ who did a great job lighting Sleeping Beauty for The Ballet School—these studios demonstrate the health and vitality of a sector that is rarely acknowledged for its financial and educational benefits to a community. The Studio Directors push the barre higher every year. The dedication and professionalism of the dancers is inspiring to watch.
There are really no good studies of this sector that I am aware of—but a recent study by The Ontario Arts Council http://www.spotlightfestival.ca/AssetFactory.aspx?did=2348 found tremendous health and a significant contribution to Ontario’s Creative Economy from the dance sector, engaging over 500,000 audience members and employing over 4000 dancers and related occupations in the region. Of the 20 dance companies surveyed revenues accounted for $54 million in 2008.
The report “Advancing Vermont’s Creative Economy by the Vermont Council on Culture and Innovation http://www.ksefocus.com/vcci_report.pdf offers a peek at the vitality of the creative sector in Vermont. But the stark contrast comes when you compare manufacturing declines with robust growth in the creative industries.
Between 1940 and 1998, the number of artists working in all sectors of the
general economy (public, commercial, and nonprofit) grew at a rate roughly
two and half times faster than that of other types of workers and now number
at least 1.5 million.
Vermont lost 8,100 manufacturing jobs between 2001 and the end of 2003,
declining from 45,600 to 37,500 jobs. Manufacturing employment has dropped
from 30% of the state's non-farm labor force in 1970 to just under 13% today.
Looking at the creative industries as a whole in Los Angeles in 2010, the Otis College of Art and Design http://www.otis.edu/creative_economy/ found that the creative sector had moved to the number 2 spot as an economic driver in the city. But what is the impact in a rural community? What types of career preparation does Dance provide? With the overwhelming majority of participants being female, what role are these studios providing that simply isn’t present in the current educational institutions, both secondary and higher ed? With the recent emphasis on STEM—Science, Technology, Engineering and Math -- the discussion by passes the role of the fine and performing arts in nurturing creativity and innovation in our rush to prepare our youth for the new economy. Clearly the dance community is providing critical foundation building for these young people, equally the contributions to the local economy cannot be understated.
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