On the occasion of International Theatre Day on March 27—a celebration established by UNESCO in the 60s to raise the profile of performing arts—Rebeca Moreno, President of the College of Theatre Producers of CDMX and administrator of the Xola Theatre, gave an in-depth interview on the current state of the industry. Moreno emphasized that theatre is a “great symphony” where success depends not only on actors, but on an integral team of lighting designers, set designers, technicians, box office staff, and ushers. “Neither courtesies nor eternal subsidies”: Rebeca Moreno's call to create solid cultural enterprises. The economic weight and the challenge of private investment. Moreno highlighted that culture contributes approximately 6.9% of the Gross Value Added (GVA) in Mexico City. The producer cited successful business cases such as The Woman in Black, which has been running for 32 years, and her own production, 12 Princesses at War, which is celebrating 15 years. She also stressed that theatre creates fixed and stable jobs for technical and marketing teams, regardless of whether the shows change. Decentralization and infrastructure: a pending task. Although Mexico City concentrates 22% of the country's theatres (about 160 venues), the distribution is deeply inequitable. However, she pointed out a significant gap in how performances are funded: currently, 40% of productions in Mexico are private, while 60% operate with public money. “We have to reverse these numbers and have more and more cultural entrepreneurship,” stated Moreno, underlining that the goal is to reach models like those in New York, where theatres generate more income than the city's sports teams. Likewise, she highlighted that only 1 in 10 people chooses theatre over cinema, so the challenge is to convince people to buy their ticket and not depend on complimentary tickets to fill the seats. Celebration and lineup at the Xola Theatre. To commemorate this week, the Xola Theatre will offer promotions and discounts from Wednesday to Sunday on all its shows. Moreno made a call to expand theatrical activity towards these peripheries and to other states, where taxes on public shows (which vary between 3% and 8% depending on the locality) often hinder national tours. The human factor: Women and audiences. A relevant data point shared by Moreno is the growing presence of women in decision-making: today, 47% of the members of the College of Theatre Producers are women. Regarding the public, Moreno explained that behavior has changed after the pandemic and it is vital to understand their dynamics. Additionally, on Thursday a conversation will be held between the College of Producers and the Association of Theatre Critics and Producers to discuss the future of the profession. The current offer includes a diversity of genres and talents: Holy Week Marathon: Special performances of 12 Princesses at War for its 15th anniversary. Comedy Friday: Marihuánologos with Arath de la Torre. High-level drama: A Streetcar Named Desire with Oscar-nominated Marina de Tavira. Family Sundays: Until the Mafia Separates Us. New proposals: Oh, Karen! (a story about animal rescuers) and the return of The Angel of Warsaw. Moreno concluded with an open invitation: “We don't want to give away theatre, we want people to come convinced to buy their ticket and to make this work”. Transcendence before criticism: The Timothée Chalamet case. During the interview, Moreno did not hesitate to defend the relevance of performing arts against those who consider them obsolete. For example, at the Xola Theatre, the audience is mostly elderly people who use public transport, which forces considering schedules that coincide with the Metro's operation. Moreno and INEGI figures confirm that the offer is concentrated almost exclusively in four boroughs: Cuauhtémoc (with the highest density of venues per person), Miguel Hidalgo, Benito Juárez, and Coyoacán. In contrast, areas like Tláhuac, Iztacalco, and La Magdalena Contreras have minimal infrastructure. In particular, she lashed out at actor Timothée Chalamet (whom she referred to as “Chamalet”), calling him a “poor boy” for supposedly expressing that opera, theatre, and performing arts “are not worth it”. For the producer, theatrical art possesses a human quality that surpasses any fleeting fame. “The truth is that Chalamet and I are going to die and people are going to continue to go see La Traviata, people are going to continue to go see Swan Lake, and people are going to continue to go see Shakespeare's plays,” Moreno sentenced, arguing that these disciplines will endure for their transcendent and human character.
