LA Weekly to Cut Local Theater Coverage in 2014

At the start of the new year, LA Weekly is cutting its current theater coverage and reviews from the average seven per week to a mere two.

Steven Leigh Morris, a longtime theater editor for LA Weekly, feels the effects of the severe cuts. His articles will drop from weekly to biweekly and the allowed length will drop from 1,200 to 800. Morris's articles will be replaced by coverage of other arts-related performances such as dance and comedy. Morris is saddened by the major cuts to the local theater coverage and believes that the decision was made by LA Weekly's overseers, Voice Media Group, in Denver. He states that the local management "has done everything in its power to keep that section vibrant for a long time. Those days are over."

Zachary Pincus-Roth, the Weekly deputy editor for arts and culture, disagrees with Morris's claims, and believes that the cut-backs are solely based on a local decision. He claims that the decision was made by made by Sarah Fenske, the Weekly's editor. According to Roth, the publication's budget was the main reason for the cuts.

As reported by the LA Stage Times, Roth intends to use these cuts to make LA Weekly's arts coverage "more comprehensive." By cutting theater's coverage, LA Weekly can include more coverage of other arts such as dance, opera, and classical music. Meanwhile, Morris is looking for other ways to continue theater coverage in LA, but so far nothing has come to fruition.

Click here to read the full article from the LA Stage Times.