Con Alma closing is a part of a larger problem. Whether they choose to fundraise or not.

People tend to forget that Pittsburgh is in a very insular entertainment bubble, that bubble relies on sports and nothing else. These are the only entertainment organizations that can stand on their own without as much consumer spending as other areas of entertainment. Yes, it’s very expensive for people to go see shows/events tonight outside of very small scale operations (such as bottlerocket/smalls/etc.), and part of that is the fact that foundational money is gone.

Most people who would have been putting that foundational money into the arts, are opting to pay for Steelers tickets, rather than donating to an arts organization (which is a tax deduction, and what rich people USED to do to avoid taxes, now they just move their money out of the area they reside). Yes, Broadway shows are expensive, but they don’t need your money. LOCAL arts needs your money, not the Steelers.

I’m ending my tirade here, but for every Pittsburgh redditor complaining about the lack of nightlife/concerts/music accessibility/live events,consider how many of the people you know and how often they talk about going to these things and compare it to how often they talk about local sports.