MAYOR CANTRELL, OFFICE FOR CULTURAL ECONOMY, OFFERS UPDATES, HIGHLIGHTS OF CULTURAL INITIATIVES AND OPPORTUNITIES FROM THE FIRST HALF OF 2023
NEW ORLEANS — Mayor LaToya Cantrell met with the Office of Cultural Economy (OCE), led by Director Lisa Alexis, at historic Gallier Hall today to provide up-to-date information and highlight impactful cultural initiatives being carried out in the first half of 2023 were highlighting future opportunities for local artists and creatives to flourish.
Also joining Mayor Cantrell and OCE was New Orleans Opera’s director of community partnerships and education, Dr. Tara Melvin, and local artist Jacques Francois, both of whom discussed the many benefits of working with OCE.
“We are more than pleased that our cultural community is fueling our economy’s growth and thriving in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “That’s why my team and I have worked tirelessly with state-level leaders to allocate more taxpayer money from tourism to directly support our cultural and hospitality industries. New Orleans is finally getting its fair share. This is also an expression of the commitment and hard work of our partners, but above all of our culture industry team. As the most Afro-centric city in the United States, we must be uncompromising and single-minded about how we invest in, preserve, and develop our city’s culture.”
Film New Orleans strongly supports the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) strike and the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strike. These strikes not only had an immediate and unprecedented negative impact on the film industry in New Orleans, but on the film industry throughout the United States.
“Every major city has felt the impact of this strike,” he said Movie New Orleans director Carroll Morton. “Right now we’re only shooting a single project in town, typically 25. However, we’re very confident that the issue can and will be resolved as I think these issues are existential to the entire industry.”
Bryon Cornelison, associate program director, emphasized Gallier Hall’s flexibility in not only being a historic city landmark, but also a space capable of hosting a variety of events within its halls. Gallier Hall recently celebrated the 170th anniversary of its opening. Cornelison also offered Francois the opportunity to discuss his artistic vision in designing the poster that Mayor Cantrell presented to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass as well as members of the Los Angeles City Council as part of the New Orleans Corridor renaming ceremony and opening announcement of the Los Angeles International Jazz Festival last June.
Alana Harris, associate director of arts and culture, highlighted the success of Mayor Cantrell’s participation in several cultural events held in New Orleans during the first half of the year, including Mardi Gras, the 52nd New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the 40th French Quarter Festival, the 29th Essence Festival of Cultural and more. Harris noted that OCE is planning additional partnerships and activations for cultural events throughout the remainder of 2023, including Bayou Classic, Mayor Cantrell’s Deck the Halls and more.
Harris invited Dr. Melvin also invited to speak about the cultural impact OCE is making through its partnership, thereby enhancing their ability to showcase New Orleans Opera through their generous grants.
OCE continues to work to showcase and support local expressions of art through visual and literary arts, film, music, crafts, fashion and cuisine to a diverse community of artists and the cultural sector. For more information on OCE, see nola.gov/cultural-economy/.
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