‘We want the NMSO to thrive,’ but not at UNM’s expense

Editor,

As director of Popejoy Hall, I would like to set the record straight concerning some inaccuracies in Tuesdays’s Daily Lobo article, “Popejoy, NMSO out of sync.”

Yes, the President’s Strategic Advisory Team recommended that Popejoy concentrate on earning more revenue from touring shows rather than from rent charged to the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, but only “if NMSO ceases to use Popejoy.”

We at Popejoy Hall did not ask the symphony to reduce its number of dates. The symphony has voluntarily cut back on dates it plans to book for next season.

As quoted in the article, Leon Sterling, from the NMSO, said the symphony is required to pay full price each time it rents Popejoy, whether it fills the hall. Ticket sales are each renter’s responsibility. We do ask the symphony to pay the rental rate it contracted for.

Should we be expected to see how well the concert sells before we establish the rental rate?

We have to operate Popejoy using common industry practices, since we are expected to operate under a balanced budget.

We cannot be expected to reduce rent because the renter does not generate enough sales.

NMSO has not been the last priority for booking dates, as Sterling said. We book our touring Broadway shows first because they require the most flexibility from us to make their tours work, and because they provide the bulk of our income.

Once we have Broadway shows in place — five to seven shows each season — we then book the symphony’s dates, which fund less than 4 percent of the Popejoy budget. After that, we fill in the rest of our season. We even hold off booking shows for our Schooltime Series, the largest K-12 performing arts education program in the state, until after we have the NMSO dates.

Sterling said, “(Popejoy) changed their mission. The original mission was to be a community orchestra venue. They were actually built to support NMSO …”

Popejoy was originally intended as a venue that would enhance the University and city’s cultural life, including classical music.

Documentation has not been found that states the hall was built expressly to support NMSO. Further, while the University allows NMSO to maintain a debt balance, UNM is prevented from writing off that debt by the state constitution’s anti-donation clause.

We at Popejoy wish the symphony every success, but for the NMSO to ask the University — or any department of it — to alleviate or take blame for its present financial woes is inappropriately pinning its administrative problems on others.

We want the NMSO to survive and thrive, but we cannot — by law — change our operation solely to benefit them. Popejoy must also survive and thrive for the larger good of the community and the state.

Thomas Tkach
Popejoy Hall director