Yesterday, I had lunch with a prominent local theater director, who shall go nameless because he didn’t actually know he was speaking “for the record.” He gets around a lot, visiting other cities that are engaged with The Theatre, and he was concerned. He wondered just how “theater centric” Portland is these days, because he’d observed audiences that were sparser and less intense than the audiences in Chicago or even the ones that used to fill Portland theaters. I couldn’t even begin to offer a thought about this, but I did find the inherent question interesting. And I’ve decided to turn to you for answers.

So, an open thread of sorts on the state of theater in Portland today. Is it:

1. Thriving, except for the director’s theater
2. Better than ever onstage, but audiences are a problem
3. Too expensive in these hard times
4. Lost its edge onstage, so of course the audience is going to seem dull
5. Just needs better marketing
6. Having a near-death experience
7. Other

If you’ve got a moment, please take this unofficial survey, and of course, add your comments and explanations!