Suffering a little bit...

This festival is supposed to begin exactly five weeks from tonight. However, our current sponsorship level is minimal, to put it optimistically. So a crisis point is looming, where we really have to look at what we can do with what we have now, and just go for it. The sad part is, what we have now is not much, so we're probably going to have to cut pretty deeply into our current plans. Here's a list of elements that could get the axe:

• One night of the festival (likely the night in the Teatro Heredia, since it costs money)
• International acts (very costly since we have to pay travel)
• Bogotá act (see above)
• Gastronomical part of the festival

The problem is that if we cut too deeply, we cease to be a festival. But if we don't cut, we lose money. The key is to find a way to do something fun, that generates real excitement in the city, and allows us to build for next year. (Festival planning is, by the way, the best networking exercise in the world.) My preference is to do a 2-day festival in the Claustro de Santo Domingo with only local acts. Our current level of sponsorship could cover this. If we get some more money, I say we add the gastronomical part--before international artists--because people remember the overall experience more than they do a simple concert.

Who knows, though. Maybe a pot of money will fall out of a coconut tree tomorrow morning and right into my hands.

Tonight was fun, I scored an invitation to a private performance by the Colegio del Cuerpo at the Teatro Heredia. It was held for a German-Colombian business congress, and so I even had the opportunity to practice my German a little bit. The performance was unbelievable--that such world class modern dance can come out not just of Cartagena, but of the poorest slums of Cartagena, is amazing. These kids have talent, like NYC talent. Hats off to Alvaro Restrepo, he really has done something awe-inspiring.

More work tomorrow, but Mia arrives for a visit this weekend, and I'm really looking forward to worrying a little bit less and enjoying this city a little bit more. And what's more, I can't wait until she sees Cartagena for the first time. There's no way she can anticipate how beautiful this place is.