Ever hear of Yo-Yo Ma? Ladysmith Black Mambazo? The Bad Plus, Wynton Marsalis or Chick Corea? World-class performers provide a rich cultural resource for the university community, and the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center is never quiet. As most educators will tell you, the arts are a vital part of a full education. Thank goodness this resource isn’t in trouble, but if you judged success by the number of students who attend performances or even know what’s going on, you’d think it was failing.
In 2001, the university opened the largest and most impressive performing arts center on the East Coast, an area already rich with arts resources. The mission? To transform lives through sustained engagement with the arts. CSPAC has become a well-known name among arts presenters around the country in a short time. Performers at the center represent the whole spectrum of the arts and the international community that the university prides itself on. CSPAC advocates for lesser-known performers by bringing them to the Washington area, enriches the arts through commissions and world premieres, and makes all of this available to students through discounts, opportunities to meet performers and workshops.
Unfortunately, no one seems to know or care about this on the campus. Maryland Images tell their tour groups, “I’ve never seen a show here but I hear it’s really great,” implying that CSPAC is not worth their time. The most interest students from other parts of the campus demonstrate is the desire to use the already overcrowded space, from the too-few, much-abused practice rooms to the state-of-the-art performing spaces .
The already full CSPAC schedule offers a wealth of events and great discounts for college students. Students can purchase two student-priced tickets for any one performance, and there is no dress code. In addition to “serious” performances, CSPAC offers a number of free, unticketed performances and opportunities to meet the performers throughout the year. The administration listens to feedback and brings in requested performers (this season includes Rhodessa Jones, requested by the Women’s Studies department, and Soulive, requested by the jazz students).
Sadly, most attempts to excite students about upcoming performances are met with blank stares. The students who do attend performances struggle to find friends to accompany them. The largest student groups to attend performances are those required by class, and they are frequently disruptive.
Students who are familiar with CSPAC accurately point out that it has not done a great job of reaching students. CSPAC does put a lot of work into cultivating donors and patrons fromoutside of the campus, and student involvement is usually for the departments housed in the building. That is largely because operating a performing arts center with six performing spaces and negotiating with three academic departments who share the space is overwhelming for a staff of less than 50. Recently, the CSPAC staff has been doing a better job of listening to students, and it is time for students to pay attention to CSPAC.
CSPAC offers a deal that students will never be able to find again. This is the time when we, as students, can take advantage of discounts and special offers that won’t be available after graduation. Knowledge and appreciation of the arts strengthen our understanding and appreciation of the world. If we don’t take advantage of this opportunity, we will find ourselves hurting later in life, especially when confronted with the ticket prices charged at the Kennedy Center or on Broadway.
Student performance groups are great. They enhance the college experience, and the university is fortunate to boast so many talented student performers. Involvement in performing groups provides a variety of benefits, including creative outlets, new friends and new or improved skills not taught in most majors. Student performances are a worthy tradition, which the university deserves to be proud of.
However, student performance groups are not unique to College Park. College students across the country and the decades have and continue to find opportunities to express themselves. A capella groups might be unique to the college years, but the university is certainly not the only school to offer such. Improv and sketch comedy are popular both on and off the campus. What makes this university unique is the abundance of resources available, making it one of the top-20 schools in the country. Maybe Tawes’ closing will give us a chance to understand and appreciate this resource for what it is.
Maura Lafferty is a senior music major. She can be reached at mlaffert@umd.edu.
