RAT Charging the Bulls in a Bear Market

[Jeffrey Jones <Diogenes_@compuserve.com>]

"Charge what the market will bear." What could possibly be wrong with that
notion?

Nothing, provided it suits the nature of your enterprise. If you are trying
to run a business, especially a very small business, then you have little
choice but to charge what the market will bear, which is a nice way of
saying get as much as you can out of a basically competitive (read
"hostile") market. 

Erik's point--or rather my read on Erik's point--is that the small business
model may not be the only model for RAT theatre (and, by implication, if it
is not the only model then it may not be the best model, either.) He offers
devotion and agape; it's easier for me to think of my kind of theatre as a
weird little party I throw from time to time for strangers and friends.
Hence the dinner party analogy. 

The economics of a party are different from the economics of a small
business because the goals are different.  My parties cost me money, but I
have a really good time and I hope the guests do too but you never know.
Getting the money is a drag, but that's why it's called work. For me, it's
not a huge and insuperable drag, because America's pretty much awash in
money if you're an upper middle class white guy with office skills, and
siphoning a little of the old spondulix off to have a party suits my
temperament better than trying to toil in a small business.

My bike almost got stolen last week because I had it chained to the World
Trade Center (ok, to a bike rack in front of same) and the lock broke and I
couldn't get a locksmith to come take it off because it wasn't worth their
time, and eventually thieves (at least, I assume they were thieves) started
working off the back tire, until finally I found a locksmith in the World
Trade Center, who basically works in a closet all day, and because he's the
sole proprietor, stands behind his counter with a telephone headset on all
day, so he won't miss any calls. This good man unlocked my bike after work,
and kept it overnight in his shop, because I had a dental appointment I had
to keep.  The next morning, he arrived late and explained he'd been working
in his closet until 2:30 am, just to get everything done (he also does
things like engrave 31 stainless steel coffee mugs some guy wanted as a
promotional giveaway, which is my idea of a mindnumbing chore.)  And I
thought to myself, this good man is working WAY TOO HARD. He reminds me of
all the people I've known who have tried to run tiny little theatres. I
wish him well, I wish them all well. But it is too much for me.  I don't
want to run a small business, I just want to throw an occasional arty Mardi
Gras and pick up the tab (mostly). I would give the damn stuff away but I
worry that people don't think it's any good if you give it away.  I make
them pay in order to raise their expectations just enough... But e's point,
as I take it, is that we are radiant creatures, and as radiant creatures we
should think through the nature of our interchanges. We should think a
little bit harder than the average Joe about what we give and what we take,
not because we ought to, but simply because we can.

el sin...



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