Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, lights up with pyrotechnics. (Photo by Scott Moore)
Be as Diverse as Your Students
“At a university and in a market like mine, you have a huge influx of people that moved here from somewhere else. The more diverse you are as a building the stronger you can be. If you’re doing the same thing over and over you’re only targeting one section of your audience.” — Ty Sutton, Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center, University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Midland
City as a Destination
“Obviously the key is where we are because everybody wants to come to Las Vegas. People can really plan their vacation around our annual events because they’re excited to be here. The whole city gets behind these events.” — Michael Newcomb, Thomas & Mack Center and Sam Boyd Stadium, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Use Your Resources
“Having the university’s music department in the building gives you a chance to collaborate. We hosted Susan Boyle in the hall and they said they needed to find a choir, so I walked down the hallway. We used the student choir and it was great.” — Ty Sutton, Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center, University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Midland
Student Talent
“We had the opportunity to hire graduate assistants from Wright State University and picked up an intern from a local community college. The talent of these kids is incredible — each and every one of them are so brilliant. They really do contribute to our overall success whether it’s through social media or event planning.” — Jim Brown, Wright State University’s Nutter Center, Dayton, Ohio
Employee Input
“Our staff is predominately made up of students. To know what to book, we talk to them, see what they want, and look at social media to see what and who they’re talking about. Also, because there are so many on our staff there are not only students at our door, but in our building sitting at the next office over. They’ll ask us why we haven’t had a certain artist or certain type of music.” — Aisah Gemora, Event Center at San Jose (Calif.) State University
Logistical Concerns
“Universities are like small towns. As opposed to being a downtown arena in a big city, if you’re in the middle of a campus it’s like you’re in a small city that has a residential population with some commuters. When you plop an arena down there are some logistical challenges, so you have to make sure you don’t steamroller other university events that are going on in nearby buildings. There are other ongoing challenges with traffic, parking, and making sure other worthy functions on campus aren’t disturbed in any way. You have to remember that universities are here to educate people and we want to make sure that nothing interferes with that.” — Barry Geisler, Patriot Center, George Mason University, Fairfax, Va.
Built-in Audience
“Having the student audience livens up the energy level. For general public fans and alumni, they feed off the energy and the team feeds off that energy. It’s what they mean by having a home court advantage.” — Steve Tadlock, Save Mart Center, Cal State Fresno, Calif.