A Fine Art on the Thin Edge : As government funding takes a tumble, Lula Washington is working to convince the African American community that her namesake dance troupe is worth their support.

Lula Washington is the founder and artistic director of the Lula Washington Dance Theatre/Foundation. Previously known as the L.A. Contemporary Dance Theatre, the organization celebrates its 15th anniversary this year. The studio/school, displaced since last year’s earthquake, is struggling for funding that will allow it to return to its 10-year home on La Brea Avenue and Adams Boulevard so it will remain accessible to the community it was founded to serve.

The 45-year-old Washington and her husband, Erwin, executive director of the foundation, will illustrate the need for community support in upcoming performances at Plaza de La Raza’s outdoor multicultural festival July 21, informal showcases throughout the summer at the studio (now at Pico Boulevard and La Brea) and the anniversary program scheduled in the Harriet and Charles Luckman Fine Arts Complex at Cal State Los Angeles on Oct. 27-28. She was interviewed by Jacqueline Y. Metcalfe.

As our anniversary approaches, once again the issue of the company’s importance is raised--more now than ever because of the recent cuts being made in arts funding, specifically the NEA [the National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities]. Part of the reason behind starting the theater is that we wanted to build a strong black dance company in this community--a community where most said it would not be possible.

And it has been difficult, to say the least, because of the environment here in Los Angeles, which is viewed as a commercial entertainment industry, so there is not much value placed on the fine arts. Alvin Ailey used to come to our dance studio and was very supportive of our work, and he told us that what we were trying to do here was the hardest thing in the world.

But, with the support of the NEA, we have been able to make many of the visions of the company a reality. We have created special programs for young people, such as the Summer Job Workshop and the after-school program “I Do Dance . . . Not Drugs”--in both cases being able to offer low-income students a chance to study classical and theatrical dance.

After working so hard and so long, we had reached a point where we were in good standing with NEA, and we’re now at a place where we could put a group of core dancers on salary.

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Now, that doesn’t look like it will ever become a reality, and it’s sad because what we’ve discovered is that many, many people are employed because of the arts. There are jobs in arts administration, fund-raising, development, stage managing, promotion, etc. So, it’s not just the dancer who is going to lose with the loss of the NEA. Many individuals haven’t looked at it from that point of view.

Also, many don’t realize that the NEA impacts your earned income as well as company grants. The show producers who pay us a fee for performing get much of their backing from the NEA for the show. So consequently, there will be fewer avenues to showcase our talents and make a living.

With the NEA being threatened, all of the components that make up our foundation are at risk--our outreach program, the youth dance company, and the supporting jobs that have grown with these programs. . . . The very survival of the dance theatre is at risk.

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When people invest in the arts, a lot of positive things happen--teens tend not to have time for premarital sex, gangs, drugs, etc., because they’re too busy expressing themselves in a creative way through the arts. What society and this community have to realize is that the arts are a part of the solution, it’s an answer to some of the things happening.

The misconception of the arts, particularly in our community, the black community, is that all dancers do is run around, shake around.

Most people don’t know that the Lula Washington Dance Theatre has performed all over the United States and brought some inner-city dancers to places they would have never been otherwise. This is not “Soul Train” or [the rap star] Hammer. Artistic dance not only entertains, but can deal with social issues too.

It’s very hard as African Americans to get our point of view across and our stories told. The dance company tackles and tells the story of our people. There’s a history being preserved and culture explored through dance.

So, there needs to be a major attitude adjustment on the part of the community. If you decide to go see “Judge Dredd” to see how that goes, why can’t you put your child in a dance class to see how it goes? If we have more people in dance classes and a larger audience, then we could compensate for some of the money lost in funding.

The cultural arts have to be nurtured, like a plant. We are a living thing, we have to have water to grow, i.e. funding, and students to spread our branches, and the community supporting us from the bottom, holding us up. Otherwise, I’m not certain if this company and others like it can make it even to the year 2000.