The theater provides kids with invaluable cultural experiences

A column by Liberty Theater Manager Mike Ferrians

In a February edition of the Times, the Americanism of the week was a quote from

Annie Proulx, author of The Shipping News: “One of the tragedies of real life is that there is no background music.”

Without music, there is no life. For decades, music has been an “elective” in the public school sys- tem, taking a backseat to classical educational elements deemed primary. But the Performing Arts are not electives in life. They are mandatory. We need them to survive, to be human. Our local pub- lic schools have been forced to cut or severely limit programs in vocal music and drama. Some Touchet Valley students have chosen to attend high school in Walla Walla in order to get the music or theater experience they want and need. It is up to other organizations to help fill the gaps. Local libraries, churches and after-school programs, such as The Club in Dayton, are doing great things.

There is a great cry for empha- sis on technical and scientific ed- ucation for our young people. The economy requires it and many children are drawn to it. But the idea that Science and Technology are different kinds of pursuits than the Performing Arts is a misconception; they really are not. They are facets of a stone. Mechanical engineers are powerfully creative people. Musicians and visual artists are, in one way or another, highly technical. I’ve met a few teens who have built digital mixing studios in their bedrooms, or their own computer science labs, often unknown to anyone, so they can be their creative selves. It’s empowering.

One of the arguments I’ve heard is that music or drama pro- grams face “stiff competition,” not only for tax-payer dollars in public schools, but from popular sports programs or other activities. I reject this argument because it represents a false dichotomy. No university in the country would tolerate a football season without a pep band. Many young people I’ve worked with in theater have also enjoyed rewarding athletic lives. You can’t feed kids one food all the time. As it is, some children may only get invited to do skits at a short summer camp. At the Liberty, we have “raised” a handful of actors who went on to study performing arts in college with the view toward a career.

Annual fall musical productions at the Liberty Theater, sponsored by the Touchet Valley Arts Council, have become an increasingly expensive community tradition. But we have produced 18 of them, each one involving 60-100 people of all ages. As a theater veteran, director and life-long music coach I have watched adults form lifelong friendships, business owners make connections, families strengthen, children develop positive self-image and experience resiliency against challenging home and social conditions. Performing Arts are emotionally therapeutic and intellectually satisfying. Many well-known actors in our culture discovered themselves through community theater. More to the point, performing arts are exercises for our souls. And music is a necessary tool for brain development. Taking away the fall musical would leave a hole I don’t even want to think about. What’s more, the fall musicals bring in more money than any other single TVAC program during the year – thus allowing us, as a non-profit organization, to continue funding our mission: to help promote, preserve and enhance culture and Performing Arts in SE Washington. The annual summer Missoula Children’s Theater residency, offered without cost to local families, is an indication of our commitment. It costs over $3,000 to host this life-giving opportunity to our children. Some folks have it on their perpetual calendars, and we must secure funding for that program each year.

I invite you to give financially to Touchet Valley Arts Council – toward the annual operating budget at any time, in any amount; personal bequests or estate giving; or our rapidly-growing Endowment Fund administered by Blue Mountain Community Foundation. I urge you also to consider lending your time and skills to strength- en Performing Arts programs. You don’t have to be on stage to con- tribute to this magic.

It is not a leap of logic to assert that we have more work to do to- gether to ensure that everyone in our corner of the world has the chances they deserve to grow, de- velop and thrive through the cre- ative and magical power of the Performing Arts. I’m open to ex- ploring new ways to fill the gaps: vocal music sessions, student film projects or poetry slams. I invite you to join me. No, I urge you to join me. This stuff matters. Too many kids go through life without a soundtrack. So let’s help each other find it.

You may contact me at 509- 382-1380, or send email to mike@ libertytheater.org if you have ideas or resources to share.