MCA: Room at the Top
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Consey completed the herculean task of funding, erecting, and opening the MCA’s $50 million new building on East Chicago, but according to art dealer Richard Gray, there was “a certain incompatibility between Kevin and the MCA’s mission. It appeared that the institution under his direction was not able to project and communicate a clear sense of what its mission should be.” Others maintain that running a museum like the MCA is never easy. “Creating a sense of excitement in a contemporary art museum is the most difficult thing to do in the world,” notes gallery owner Roberta Lieberman, who considers herself a good friend of Consey’s. Unlike the Art Institute, which can count on public recognition of a name like Renoir or Monet, contemporary museums need to find creative ways of attracting large audiences.
While Consey seems pleased to be moving on, some observers believe that his days at the MCA were numbered–dealing with its board of directors is a no-win situation. “There has always been a battle for power between the board and the director at the MCA,” says art dealer Paul Klein, who considers the museum’s often elitist, “holier-than-thou” attitude a turnoff. But after Consey’s announcement, MCA board chairman Penny Pritzker insisted that his decision to resign was entirely his own.
But Moskos and his troupe of improv actors–Boom Chicago–bought their airline tickets, put collected savings of $8,000 in their pockets, and forged ahead anyway. Boom Chicago debuted in a tiny space behind a bar just off the Leidseplein, one of several large plazas that dot central Amsterdam. Its first production, “Off the Bike Path,” featured five actors performing skits and games about current affairs, life in Amsterdam, and cultural differences between nations. English-speaking tourists accounted for most of the initial audience, but the Dutch began showing up in ever-larger numbers, drawn mostly by the novelty. Within a year the company moved to a 200-seat cabaret, added a kitchen, and started serving meals before the show.
