The Washington Post - 27.03.2020

C2 eZ re KK THE WASHINGTON POST.FRIDAy, MARCH 27 , 2020

I admire that,” he said of rutter

and Gelb. “Not everyone can do

that.”

rutter’s senior team is taking

a 25 percent reduction in pay, a

move she says they initiated.

The public announcement of

rutter’s pay cut came on the

heels of the Kennedy Center re-

ceiving $25 million in the mas-

sive $2 trillion stimulus package

that was awaiting a House vote

after passing in the Senate on

Wednesday. The money prompt-

ed outrage in conservative cir-

cles that do not approve of gov-

ernment support for culture. It

also upset some arts leaders, who

were dismayed by the size of the

grant compared with the

$75 million set aside for the

National Endowment for the

Arts.

rutter w as heartbroken by the

criticism.

“It’s not a bailout,” she said.

“We are different from any other

arts organization [because] we

have this responsibility as a me-

morial to John f. Kennedy.”

If the stimulus package is

passed by the House and signed

by President Trump, the funds

will go toward the arts center’s

$6 million in fixed monthly

costs, r utter said, including sala-

ries and benefits and the cost of

office and warehouse rentals.

The money will not be used for

artistic programming, nor will it

go toward paying the ushers,

artists and others who have lost

income since march 12.

The arts center is selling some

tickets for future performances,

but it has had almost no income

since the closure. rutter said the

federal money will replace lost

income until r eopening, whether

that’s in may or July or later.

Losses, she said, will exceed

$55 m illion if the closure extends

through Sept. 30, the end of the

arts center’s fiscal year.

“Being a living memorial

means you don’t just open the

front door,” she said. “It will

hopefully allow us to keep the

personnel together to keep the

organization going.”

[email protected]

geoff edgers contributed to this

report.

— including ushers, retail and

concession workers — and it

won’t compensate most of the

artists who were booked for per-

formances that have been can-

celed. The Kennedy Center re-

mains shut until at least may 10;

the next budget cuts will proba-

bly target some of its 670-mem-

ber full-time staff.

It’s a common practice for

highly compensated executives

to reduce their pay when calami-

ty strikes. rutter follows metro-

politan opera General manager

Peter Gelb, who announced

march 19 that he was canceling

the rest of the season and forgo-

ing his $1.4 million salary until

the world’s largest performing

arts company returned to work.

for large organizations like

these — with annual budgets of

$270 million to $300 million —

it’s m ore symbolic than f inancial,

said Andrew Ta ylor, a professor

of arts management at American

University.

“There’s a symbolism and

communications problem if

you’re starting to inflict loss and

suffering on your staff,” Taylor

said. “If Peter Gelb or Deborah

rutter start to, and need to, lay

off lots of people and calling the

people they have contracts with

and saying they going to invoke

force majeure... it doesn’t look

great or feel great if they’re not

making a sacrifice themselves.”

It’s a different situation at

smaller organizations, Ta ylor

said, when cutting salaries will

help with immediate cash flow.

In those cases, it’s more likely

that every salary will be reduced.

for example, the massachu-

setts museum of Contemporary

Art in North Adams, mass., h ad

to lay off 120 of its 165 employees

this week as the majority of its

$12 million in revenue comes

from attendance, concerts and

other events. museum director

Joseph Thompson, who earns

$300,000, said he would take a

28 percent pay cut. But with a

mortgage and one child in col-

lege, Thompson said, he can’t

afford to do what rutter and

Gelb have done.

“It shows real leadership, and

sAlAry from C1

Rutter, like other leaders

in arts, is declining pay

rus p andemic,” t he caption reads.

oK! has a similar approach,

with a lead story about the se-

crets and scandals of country

music stars and only brief men-

tions of the pandemic. In a story

about how filming “A Quiet

Place” b rought A-list c ouple John

Krasinski and Emily Blunt closer

together, there’s an added note

that the march 20 premiere of

the sequel “was recently delayed

due to coronavirus concerns.”

But the magazine that best

reflects the state of jumbled con-

fusion is Us Weekly, which on the

surface is mostly business as

usual with a cover story on

Prince Harry — and then has a

tiny sidebar that says “WorLD

IN CrISIS,” paired with a sub-

head promising “stay-healthy

tips & tricks” from 11 celebs.

(They include exercising, consid-

ering going vegan and prioritiz-

ing mental health.)

one story is devoted to the

coronavirus, with the headline

“Coronavirus Crisis: Hollywood

on Pause”; it details stars who

have been diagnosed in addition

to what productions are shut

down. In true Us Weekly fashion,

it both terrifies us and tries to

ease our minds, as the story

concludes: “A s things will likely

get worse before they get better

— movie theaters in multiple

cities have been closed as a

precaution — the global box

office could reportedly lose up to

$20 billion. Be well, everyone.”

[email protected]

Elba, who tested positive and

said he’s asymptomatic, is “fight-

ing for his life.” While the corre-

sponding article is slightly more

toned down (“Celebs band to-

gether as CoVID-19 costs the

industry more t han $20 b illion”),

there’s a cringeworthy sidebar

about which celebrities Wilson

could have infected at a Holly-

wood charity fundraiser she at-

tended on feb. 27.

Then, there are the tabloids

that feel as if you’re in a different

world: Us Weekly, oK! and Star,

which, like In To uch, are all

owned by American media Inc.

(People is owned b y the meredith

Corp.) Star appears to be operat-

ing on its own planet: A subhead

that reads “Gone Viral!” is only

about Jennifer Lopez and Alex

rodriguez’s popular TikTok vid-

eo, and the cover story reveals

Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston’s

beach wedding is in the works.

(of course, the magazine notes,

“reps for both stars deny they’re

tying the knot.” But the story

includes lots of details from an

unnamed “insider,” and ends on

the crazy-making quote, “Jen’s

eager to be a mom. It’s a dream

come true for her to be part of a

proper family!”)

Elsewhere in Star, the only

indication that something has

gone awry is in the pages of

“NormAL or NoT?” with a

picture of “A merica’s Got Ta lent”

judge Howie mandel in a full

hazmat suit. mandel “isn’t t aking

any chances amid the coronavi-

“Hollywood Battles Coronavirus:

Who Has It and Who Doesn’t?” is

splashed across the page with

claims that Angelina Jolie “fears

for her kids,” Justin Bieber took a

“secret trip” to a clinic, and Idris

on the other side, In Touch’s

march 30 issue largely has the

usual (who wore it best, winners

and losers of the week), but also

has a covid-19 cover with a heavy

celebrity spin. The headline

cade-old magazine has been pro-

duced without anyone in the

office: “We’ll keep bringing you

our compelling entertainment

stories, inspiring human-inter-

est profiles and essential service.

We feel our mission becomes

even more useful in difficult

times.”

The issue has plenty of other

stories (Prince Harry drama,

“The Bachelor” drama), but the

main spread is an eight-page

special report, which covers ev-

erything from the virus’s impact

to To m Hanks and rita Wilson’s

diagnoses. Updates are also in-

terspersed with regular features:

In the “chatter” section with

notable quotes, there’s orlando

Bloom talking about how he was

celibate for six months before

meeting Katy Perry (“I don’t

think it was advisable. You have

to keep it moving down there.”)

next to octavia Spencer saying

her contactless handshake for

the next few months will be the

Wakanda greeting. Plus, there

are plenty o f Instagram photos o f

how stars are social distancing.

one that has already severely
impacted the entertainment in-
dustry — while at the same time,
provide a much-needed distrac-
tion?
A dive into the print tabloids
on stands this past week is like a
very brief trip to an alternate
reality, as you become absorbed
in the blessedly mundane sto-
ries: Let’s take a tour of Pharrell’s
$16.9 million mansion. What has
Suzanne Somers been up to?
Dennis Quaid, 65, is engaged to a
26-year-old — oh, and their wed-
ding has been postponed be-
cause of coronavirus concerns.
Then real life comes screaming
back to you.
reality sets in most often
while reading People, the celebri-
ty magazine most grounded by
serious journalistic responsibili-
ties. The march 30 cover reads,
“facing fears and finding Cour-
age: The Coronavirus Crisis.” In a
letter inside to readers, Editor in
Chief Dan Wakeford reveals it’s
the first time the nearly five-de-

tAbloIds from C1

Celebrity-focused magazines provide a brief trip to an alternate universe

emIly yAHr/tHe WAsHINgtON POst

In touch, like other magazines, had their usual features plus a

heavy dose of celebrity-related coronavirus stories.

susAN WAlsH/AssOCIAted Press

Kennedy Center President deborah rutter, who earns an annual

salary of $1.2 million, will not draw her pay until the crisis is over.

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