Wednesday, April 21, 2004
SPP’s currently working on a project about tj’s arts scene, and i just thought i’d float this idea here, cos somehow i think it might actually work, and i’d love to see it happen.
Currently, external arts events receive minimal attention in school, partly because there’s not enough information going around to begin with, and also because generally not many people are interested anyway. i mean, how many people around you are like, woohoo…can’t wait to get to that SSO concert tomorrow! like, Beethoven’s the absolute greatest?
However there are definitely a handful of arts enthusiasts around. I don’t mean arts as in arts class, lit-geog-history taking people, i mean people who are genuinely interested in the arts scene: in watching plays, in non-mainstream film, in literature and poetry, in music or dance…people who would and do go for arts events on their own. The reason (partly) for tj’s glaring lack of an arts scene is because these people are pretty much the minority. Ok, maybe i don’t know enough, but i’m pretty sure these people make up a
very small proportion of tj, and i don’t think most of them have managed to find one another as yet.
So now we have two basic issues
1. finding some sort of platform for those who are
already interested
2. raising the level of interests in the arts in the rest of the general population
So here’s the idea: Say we have a bunch of hardcore arts fans…the art enthusiasts aforementioned. These people get together, and well, basically, do stuff together. Like attend performances or exchange books…whatever. People i know have bemoaned the fact that so few people they know would even attend an arts event of any sort, much less actively follow the arts scene. And hey, since there’s so few of us (alright…one of those people is me) around, and since (i think) we all have this *problem so to speak, why not get together since there’s some form of common interest? After all, there’s safety in numbers, etc.
Not done yet, there’s still the second issue at hand…since the point of the whole discussion to begin with was to work towards a vibrant arts scene which means, get everyone else interested
Then there are those who “wouldn’t mind” going for arts events. and honestly, they wouldn’t. When tj was selling Forbidden City tickets last year the response wasn’t bad. And school events…like band, drama, Temasek night and gema, etc…are pretty well received. So why aren’t these people flooding the concert halls? Lots of reasons…Firstly, cos there really isn’t much information available. Occasionally this slip of paper listing arts events in the coming month gets handed out and passed around, but its not really publicized, it doesn’t say a lot, no one actually knows when it will appear, and the fact that it’s passed around means that there’s a tendency for it to lose itself.
Secondly, it gets pretty troublesome when you need to check out each event, find ticket times, check the organizers website, call in and book tickets, make sure you get the tickets on time, etc etc etc. Will the average individual be bothered to go through all that just to get a ticket? gee i dunno maybe we should just catch a movie
Thirdly, costs. Artsy things tend to be expensive. Enough said.
Essentially, there’s this sort of inertia that stops people who haven’t been exposed to the arts to start actively participating. And all the messiness and practical difficulties don’t help. Neither does the fact that art is looked upon as something, well, out of the norm. So that’s where we (you?) come in.
Our core group of enthusiasts (remember?) should be more than happy to get more people interested in the arts. And these people can, by dealing with the messiness and practical difficulties, kind of reduce the inertia involved. Think enzymes and activation energy.
For a start, we could do all the finding out, like, compile all the information about arts events including reviews and background info, put it all together and make it available. And it should be done and designed to get people interested What we have now just gives the facts. What we can do is maybe mark out those that come highly recommended, or perhaps find out which ones offer student discounts. you know. That leads to the second point…the bookings, callings, and everything can be handled by us…instead of by each individual person. Like, we book en bloc on behalf of anyone who’s interested, collect the ticket for them, etc. This might be slightly unfeasible for us especially we’re doing it on a large scale. However, if for a start there are maybe 10 interested people or something, it should be quite possible for all of us to book- and attend- the event in question together.
I’m not sure what we can do about the cost, but sometimes students can get reimbursements after attending arts events. we can deal with that too, if the need arises. And tickets for certain events are cheaper if you buy a whole lot at one go.
So that’s basically it. People out there, please do tell me what you think. Have to ask you because we didn’t think of it early enough to include it in our survey. Plus, it will only work if there are really enthusiastic, really interested, hard core arts fans around to make it happen. And that sounds like yourself or someone around you, please do let me know. email me if you want. kran_berrie@hotmail.com
love you all, and please let me know yeah?
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