Machine Project needs money too

With just about every local arts organization (see MOCA, Bob Baker Marionette Theater,  et al.) desperately seeking funds, it's not shocking to hear that offbeat Echo Park collective Machine Project is facing a budget crunch.

But it was still a surprise to fans of Machine Project, which in mid-November "took over" LACMA for a day, when founder and director Mark Allen posted a letter on the group's homepage asking for donations.

The plea for funds isn’t as urgent as the letter might make it seem. Machine Project has enough money in the bank to operate for the next four months. But its budget relies heavily on foundation support and the group didn't receive certain grants it was hoping for.  And there isn't time to wait it out through the next round of grant proposals.

Allen, above, admits that the organization has been less than aggressive about developing its member rolls  -- something that's changing now. "People are very enthused about Machine Project, but I have not done a good job of communicating to them that we’re all in this together," says Allen, who told Culture Monster that people have been donating money since he posted his letter on the Machine Project website.

Machine Project operates on a monthly budget of $9,000. According to Allen, about $3,500 covers rent; $4,000 goes to operations manager Michele Uyu's salary and her payroll taxes, and the rest pays for bookkeeping services, graphic design services, electric bills and the like.

Puppets, like those at Bob Baker Marionette Theater, need money too

MOCA isn't the only prominent L.A. arts organization facing a financial crisis. The Bob Baker Marionette Theater urgently needs at least $30,000 to catch up on its mortgage. Located on a forlorn corner between the skyscrapers of downtown L.A. and the gentrifying neighborhood of Echo Park, the theater has been staging whimsical puppet shows under the careful hand of owner and master puppeteer Bob Baker for 49 years.

The difficult situation was thrown into a tailspin last week when a well-meaning friend of the theater sent out a dire warning that if Baker didn't come up with the money by Dec. 3, the theater would shut down.

"That's not true!" Baker firmly says. "We're not closing, we're not selling the building and we're not in foreclosure. We do need $30,000. But if we don’t get it by Dec. 3, the theater will NOT be sold."

Baker said on Monday he paid off some of his debt and is negotiating a payment schedule with his creditors that would allow him to keep the theater open. But the tanking economy has exacerbated the theater's financial woes.

"We had a new mortgage made up about a year ago. It was to get rid of a very bad mortgage, and it was a little higher than I anticipated. We anticipated the theater doing more business, but then the school budgets were cut. Our regular business also started to fall off because now people were dealing with the housing and financial crises," Baker says.