Fine Arts Are in Survival Mode as Funds Dry Up

"There's rarely extra money in good times," says Bolger, whose museum opened in 1929, the year the Great Depression began. "We're already into the adversity mode."

The downturn walloping the entire economy has hit non-profit arts organizations especially hard. With millions of people scrambling to pay for food and other basics, a night at the opera can seem frivolous. So museums, symphonies, theaters, ballet companies and opera companies have cut staff, canceled performances, shortened seasons and, in some cases, shut down.