Blog Archives

Winter Quarter Cities Highlight: From Philly to... Beijing, Guangzhou & Tainan!

2/27/2018

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Drexel and even the greater USA become a temporary or sometimes permanent home to international students from around the world. This quarter we are taking a look at 3 different cities and their arts and cultural practices. How are they similar or different from Philly?

Research on these cities was inspired by the home cities of
three first year Arts Admin students.

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Artists' Mind by Marie Freisleben (1st year Arts Administration student)

2/27/2018

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You see, An artist mind
Is hard to define

My emotions are a mess
But I rather keep my emotions on lockdown than confess
Filled with endless hope
That art is the answer to help the world cope
Create acceptance through cultural variety
To form a closer, better society

You see, An artist mind
Is hard to define

My imagination is my escape
I rather work hard to live in love than to hate
I value absolute silence
Just sit and draw; avoid the violence
I'd take on the weight of the world to help others
Try to be a role model for those without mothers...

You see, the artist mind
is hard to define.

Life is filled with many tribulations
That gift you with these mini revelations
Artists are creative and real
Using their art to express how they feel
Our thoughts are complex and messy
So be patient before u get too testy
We will create an adventure in every day
As we treasure life's beauty in every way.

You see... an artist mind
Is hard to define

But those that take the time
To try and figure out mine
Will learn I like tequila and lime
I can't walk a straight line
I watch the super bowl for halftime
I love hikes because I like to climb
I'm worth more than just a dime
... I create my own perfect paradigm
So I know I'll be fine

As you see... an artist mind
Is hard to define.

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Our Annual Fundraiser Revamped: Arts & Culture Soirée! by Jade Cintron

2/27/2018

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As you may have heard through the grapevine, The Annual AAGA Arts Auction is being revamped to better represent the variety of arts and interests of both alumni and current students. Our new event is titled: “Arts & Culture Soirée” Presented by Drexel’s Arts Administration & Museum Leadership Programs.

We are excited to announce that this year it will feature a variety of a new and dynamic opportunities to reconnect with other alums, support future cohorts and support local artists. There will be live music, a fun and competitive raffle of arts experiences from different organizations throughout the city, and an Artist Marketplace where you can have a live interaction with the artists while you purchase their work on-site. The Marketplace will feature artwork of various mediums, from fine arts and jewelry to health and beauty! There will be plenty for you to choose from!

Contributions from the purchase of raffle tickets, ticket sales and direct donations will go towards the support and professional development of current and future cohorts through trips to advocacy days in DC, professional conferences and workshops, guest speakers and much more!

Needless to say, we’ve got our work cut out for us, but we’re quite excited to usher in a new era of ideas and traditions!

Save The Date
What: Arts & Culture Soirée
Where: URBN Annex - 3401 Filbert St, Philadelphia PA 19104
When: Friday, April 13, 2018
Time: 6pm-9pm
Dress: Cocktail Attire
Tickets: $20
Invitations coming soon!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

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A Drexel Alum's Perspective by Meghan Randolph

2/27/2018

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On a dreary Saturday last November I sat in an event room at the historic Peabody Hotel in Memphis, TN. I nervously adjusted the suit I was wearing and frantically sipped a bottle of water, looking from my table out to the currently empty room of chairs, some of which would contain real actual humans soon. They were from all over the world, and they wanted to hear what I had to say about a topic that was near and dear to my heart: How on earth do you get people to show up to theatre pieces they’ve never heard of?

The issue is close to me because I run a professional musical theatre company in Madison, Wisconsin that does just that: Presents new and lesser-known pieces. Our niche is important but tough. We must convince theatergoers, who traditionally buy tickets to things they recognize, that there is a future for this art form. We as an organization tenuously balance our budget, knowing that we can’t rely on a boom of ticket sales for the work we do simply based on the titles.

I founded the company in 2005, attended the University of Hard Knocks for about eight years, and then decided to get my Masters from Drexel. Attending the residency on campus was extremely inspiring, and the coursework fed into what I believe is the most crucial part of what arts administrators do: Innovation. What we do is about so much more than balancing a budget; it’s about inspiring, thinking outside the box, and trusting our own instincts. After all, we all have a discipline, and we all got our start as artists.

I knew from day one of the residency that I wanted my thesis to be on the marketing of lesser-known theatre pieces. Shockingly, I was not able to find much on the topic at all, and had to cobble together my secondary research from many bits and pieces. My primary research was a survey that reached 150 theatergoers across the nation and tried to determine just what drives them to attend a theatre piece they’ve never heard of. I was also fortunate enough to be part of the Culture Lab Research project, which allowed me to create an online collection of articles on this topic in collaboration with Wolf Brown.

Writing the thesis changed my life and my business. The information I gleaned was invaluable to programmatic and financial planning for coming years. But what really surprised me was how many people were curious about this issue. After my first HowlRound article was published and featured on Arts Journal in May, I received e-mails from all over the country with questions. In July, on a whim, I proposed the topic to the National Arts Marketing Project. To my shock, they invited me to be part of a panel on the subject for their 2017 conference. I was joined by a marketing representative from the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center at the University of Maryland, the Flynn Center in Vermont, and the Roundabout Theatre Company in New York. They were all asked to join me for varying perspectives, but it had been my proposal that started it. Four of us from extremely different organizations, all doing lesser-known work on purpose and all grappling with the same questions.

I could tell that for some people, presenting at this conference wasn’t that big of a deal. They’d been doing this circuit for years. But it meant so much to me. Being in Wisconsin can make branching out difficult, and I’d felt trapped with more to offer than outlets available.

People started to come into the room slowly. Then the door started to get jammed up. Then they had to bring in more chairs. Then they ran out of chairs altogether and people had to stand. It was thrilling. I shared what I’d learned, as did the others on the panel. People were lining up to the back of the room to ask questions and offer their own perspectives. We still had raised hands and people at the microphone when we were forced to end the session because they had to set up for the next one. People were more than curious…they were passionate.

I don’t claim to have all of the answers to this question of audiences for lesser-known works. I doubt I ever will. But the process of writing my thesis at Drexel helped me find some answers and opened up several doors. I ignited and am helping to continue a discussion. And knowing that others are working hard to bring unusual theatre pieces to their audiences made me tear up as I left the room that day. This is personal work, after all. And I’m grateful to be doing it with the tools I got from the extraordinary program at Drexel.

Meghan’s theatre company page 
Meghan’s November HowlRound article
Meghan's Medium Article

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Winter Quarter Cities Highlight: From Philly to... Beijing, Guangzhou & Tainan!

Artists' Mind by Marie Freisleben (1st year Arts Administration student)

Our Annual Fundraiser Revamped: Arts & Culture Soirée! by Jade Cintron

A Drexel Alum's Perspective by Meghan Randolph

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