KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As the coronavirus leaves a path of devastation in its wake, many within the performing arts industry are focused simply on survival with concert venues, dance halls and opera houses closed.
The Kansas City Symphony announced Thursday that the rest of its season, which usually runs through June, would be canceled due to stay-at-home orders caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symphony has been forced to cancel around 30 performances.
"We tried to hold out as long as we could, not knowing what the next week would bring," Danny Beckley, the executive director for the Kansas City Symphony, said. "We’re losing millions of dollars in ticket revenue as a result of these cancellations."
Despite the struggles, the Kansas City Symphony will still pay its musicians and provide them with benefits, making almost as if the pandemic did not happen for its musicians.
So far, the symphony has not had to fire or furlough employees, which makes it unique compared to the rest of the country.
The New York Metropolitan, the largest performing-arts organization in the country, recently announced it would lay off union employees, including musicians.
The National Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony and others also have announced layoffs, furloughs or pay cuts.
"I’ve lived a lot of places," Beckley said. "Kansas City, I can say, is truly a special community. The level of support that is here for the arts, for nonprofits generally, it’s a very philanthropic community, and it’s a community that really has a lot of ambition."
Beckley credited a rainy day fund and the support of patrons for helping the symphony weather this difficult time.
