A new law requires artists who want to perform in public spaces in Baltimore to pass an audition and pay $25 to the city for the right to sing, dance, tie balloons or whatever else they would like to do.
A new board, the Baltimore City Board of Street Entertainment, judges aspiring artists, “considering such aspects of the performance as enthusiasm, audience response, uniqueness, costume and overall talent,” according to a news statement.
Twenty-one performers tried out Saturday in Fells Point for the right, the only audition scheduled for this year.
Maybe board members will prove themselves to be Simon Cowells ? of “American Idol” fame ? weeding out the wheat from the chaff.
Who wants to listen to discordant panflutists in Canton on a Friday night, right?
But why does the city need a board to monitor performers? We already have police who fulfill that function.
Not to mention the fact that tourists and other onlookers do a good job of judging artists. If they like them, artists make money. If not, they don?t.
The city does not need to get into the Good Housekeeping seal of approval business.
What?s next, choosing a city beer? Will Natty Boh have to audition?
The mayor should act to dismantle the board, remove the law and focus city resources on fixing quality of life issues that matter, like reducing the highest murder rate in the nation.
