Cristina Skinner presents: Project #1

October 26, 7:30 PM

Lincoln, NE

Project #1 is a devised theater piece currently being created by a group of 7 artists/students at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.  ”Humans utilize fear as a tool to help control the lives of others.  Fear is an essential element in everyday life, it is a factor in every decision made.  The group creating this piece of theater is embracing the idea of fear to show how it is used, and how fear can be overcome.”

Ping Chong & Company present: Angles of Swedenborg

October 27, 7:30 PM

NYC

“The production combines dance, theatre, music and multi-media projections and features eight angels, two spirits and, of course, Swedenborg himself, cavorting in a heavenly corral of swirling white feathers.”

Featured Bookables:

Christopher Williams Dances – Solo Commission

Need a solo dance?  Commission critically acclaimed choreographer Christopher Williams to work with you to create a new work.  A combination of your strengths and Williams’ rigorous movement vocabulary.

Kinesis Project – Step into Rehearsal

Ever want to enjoy a rehearsal without a crowded room?  Now you can!  Kinesis Project is creating a new show and they are opening up the process to include YOU.  Check out how you can get into the mix.

Interested in new plays?  CTC’s new series “Web Reading” launches tonight with a free online event!  Check out Web Reading: ”Suicide on Pennsylvania Avenue”- a beautiful and thought-provoking story about one woman’s attempt to free her family from debt.

Live from the Arizona State Fair at the famous Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum, An Afternoon with The Wallace & Ladmo Show.  Wallace and Pat McMahon discuss, as only they can, 36 years of doing the greatest kids’ show ever made.

Featured Bookable Offerings

Ever want to connect with an artist one-on-one?  Perhaps you have questions about a piece or about the artistic process.  Now you can!  Book “Your Own Private Q&A” with Kinesis Project.

Sometimes a dance is the perfect addition to a special event: a wedding reception, anniversary party, a celebration of you!  Now you can have a custom dance made for you to perform at your special event.  This is also a great gift for a couple.  Check out POP n’ wedLOCK’s “Couples Dance Lesson”.

With my interests rather seemingly unrelated to the live arts, you may ask “why AEP?” Easy. I was initially attracted to AEP because of their commitment to becoming a venue for “the sharing and spreading of the thrill of the live arts.” I am a firm believer in working for the common good and so one may be able to see why I would want to be a part of AEP: their mission to sustain (and hopefully better) the arts through helping artists design and tailor events specifically for their audience will ultimately serve the whole. For example, this kind of innovation could possibly add to the improvement of public spaces.

After a couple months of working with AEP I’ve had time to play with tying together some of my own interests – public space and design – with some of AEP’s – innovation in audience engagement. In this blog I’ll be asking questions about how to use public space better to cultivate more opportunities for audience engagement and I would love to hear what you think about these subjects as well. Feel free to email me at kate@misnomer.org.

I’d love to start a discussion.

• What’s your favorite public space in NYC/the U.S./the world?
• Have you seen an art event in a public space which seemed to influence the audience?
• What kind of live arts make you feel most connected to your favorite artist?

I’d love to know! I look forward to engaging with you guys and I hope to uncover many more questions of my own this way.

Hasta luego!

Kate

The process:

We asked both current AEP artists as well as artists who are not currently using the platform to respond to 8 different pages.  We collected feedback on each page as well as a more in-depth survey following the full presentation.  We’ve gone through all of the feedback and have averaged results to share with you.

Here’s what we learned:

• 96.25% LOVED the new designs of the pages
• 96.12% LOVED the new layout of the pages
• 94% LOVED how easy the new pages are to navigate

PS- the artists who didn’t LOVE the new pages LIKED them- we didn’t get one negative review!  

We introduced a plethora of new & updated features that will help fans and artists “GoSeeDo” more art events.  Here are the top features that artists are excited about:

1. Our new Metrics & Statistics feature that lets artists see how their fans are using GoSeeDo to interact with their favorite artists
2. Our new “Create” and “Promote” buttons for artists to manage their activities on the platform
3. Our updated “Share” feature that lets fans spread the word about events to their networks and social media pages with a simple click of a button
4. Our updated media options which lets artists add even more photos and videos to their profile as well as individual event pages

Stay tuned for more updates as AEP prepares to launch our new look and new name: GoSeeDo!

- Jeremy Williams, Community Manager

I’m Courtney, an intern who’s going to be posting periodically on this blog. But before I start filling the blogosphere with my thoughts on different art forms and cool happenings, I thought I’d tell you a few things about myself. I graduated from Goucher College in May and three weeks later I moved from Ohio to NYC.

I’m a dancer, choreographer and photographer. I’ve always been charmed with bygone eras. I guess that accounts for how much I loved my Tuscan study abroad experience; plus, imagining myself in a different time was easier when I was surrounded by ancient buildings. It also explains why I’m fascinated with the digitization of nearly every aspect of our lives but find comfort in choosing analog. At times, I prefer the physicality that accompanies certain experiences. For example, I could spend an hour browsing Amazon to buy a new book for my Kindle. But, I’d prefer to spend that hour in an actual bookstore: handling various books, smelling their particular smell, hearing the pages rustle. I think the physical response that this, among many other experiences, elicits is what keeps us engaged in an increasingly digital world.

In fact, part of the reason I accepted this internship is due to the focus on audience engagement at AEP and Misnomer Dance Theater. Early into college, I was able to see how engaging an audience creates a positive impact. The dance department hosts open rehearsals at the end of every guest artist’s 10 day residency. During them, the audience gets the opportunity to preview the work as well as ask questions to the artist and dancers. These events provided me with opportunities to see more than just the work- I was drawn into the story behind it. We also were encouraged to ask more personal questions to the artists. Learning more about the artist provided insight into the work that would have otherwise gone unnoticed.

What about you? What experiences make you react strongly? Are you interested in the preservation of pre-digital forms? Is there a way for both to coexist or are certain things headed for obscurity? Can you think of a time when you felt particularly engaged with an artist or art form? I would love to hear from you!

You can post a comment or email me here: Courtney

Looking forward to hearing from you, Courtney

We finally arrived at our site name for AEP!  The site name is…. GoSeeDo!

I never though of naming as a difficult task. I have named kids. Pets. Dance moves. It has never been a problem. But coming up with a name for the public facing brand of AEP… that was a challenge.

We had been looking for a  name that would be easy for the public to remember and inspire a sense of action and involvement among people coming to have new experiences with the arts. There are two ways that the public interested with the platform, either through a direct relationship with a particular artists, or to the central site’s public discovery interface where people can find new ways to engage with artists. The name needed to work for both.

I don’t know exactly how many hours were spent on domain search sites or how many names we discussed, evaluated, and dismissed. Some were too adventurous. Others too meek. Some were too forward. Others too elusive.  Needless to say, when we finally emerged with a name that most everyone on the team and of the 20+ people we surveyed liked, I was thrilled.

We’re now phasing in the branding to reflect the name. This starts working on the visual identity, and the first step is deciding on a logo. I had expected the logo process to be harder than the naming process. But so far it is an incredibly fun and fluid experience.

I’d like to share the initial set of logo designs that we looked at. Take a look. See what you think. And let us know which one you would pick or any feedback you have.

Oh yeah – let us know what you think of the name as well

Mahalos,

Rob