Community: the artist’s role in the community, CFA’s role in the artistic and university community, the importance of dialog and engagement, connection to alumni and broader community. Sharing resources, engagement, and advocacy. Having a voice in the BU community: a seat at the table.
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Jim Petosa posted on January 18, 2011 at 11:20 pm
The underpinnings of this category seem utterly fundamental to me. Its questions posit a real need to articulate the mission of CFA in its most basic participant in the sociology of the University. It seems to me that this is a critical area of investigation because it insists that we define ourselves within the organism of our own institution. Once we do that, it is MUCH easier to answer the question in the expanding concentric circles of influence that we have and/or seek.
lynne allen posted on January 20, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Dana and I agree totally. We can’t promote ourselves until we define ourselves and that is the goal of the strategic plan. Once we have defined ourselves, what are the ways we integrate (while retaining our own identify) ourselves into the University community and how we integrate in a way that is feasible and effective.
We have done baby steps in this area, with larger plans in the works, but I know they can be expanded upon.
danaf posted on January 20, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Also, lynne and I discussed that since we don’t really have a community here to being with, it becomes difficult to integrate into a larger community structure, except from people to people.
emcarr posted on January 20, 2011 at 12:25 pm
Agreed, we need to continue building community on campus by providing compelling arts experiences for students, faculty, and staff. If we consider the attention and funding that athletics receive at BU, it’s an interesting parallel to pursue–for example, an arts pass for every student, state-of-the-art facilities to present our work, etc.
Jim Petosa posted on January 21, 2011 at 12:59 pm
Our Academic Outreach Committee is one way that we have found to grow our sense of community. (Also, the growing significance of our theatre minors program.) We really do have strong relationships with colleagues in Public Health, Theology, Management, the Writing Program, MET, etc. They all need further cultivation, but what is emerging is real, strong, and significant. All that in two years! Very promising.
Patricia Mitro posted on January 23, 2011 at 9:49 pm
We have made strides recently but CFA events are not a part of the undergradaute experience for most BU students.
It would be great to do have some brain storming on ways to connect to the BU community.
Dana and Lynne mentioned the lack of community within CFA. We need to work on that also; is there community within each school and just not in CFA as a whole?
Jim Petosa posted on January 24, 2011 at 9:57 am
Agreed, Patricia. It has been a terrific weekend watching the team of theatre designers meeting with the opera folk as we begin our exploration of Paulus’ POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE. A palpable sense of community arises when we work together. I have felt it keenly everytime we collaborate, whether it is Bowles, EGBDF, Fringe, BUT opera, InCite. L’histoire du Soldat, etc. Very powerful stuff when it happens. Still need to get SVA into the mix more frequently. I remember the paintings that were produced by undergrad painters that cited a line or phrase from ROMEO AND JULIET and were exhibited in the BU Theatre lobby on the nights of the play’s performance. They did some terrific stuff. Brainstorm sessions to consider the possibilities?
lynne allen posted on January 24, 2011 at 11:48 am
I know we all understand we are different animals about how we create, however I do agree with Jim that there can be synergy between theater and visual arts. The key here is person to person, not dictated top down, but efforts made to reach out from faculty to faculty in areas that will benefit both.
lynne allen posted on January 24, 2011 at 11:54 am
Can the theater department produce a performance based on the subject matter of art work in the gallery? Often times the artists are making work about music (symphony rehearsals) or a narrative, which does happen here, but only by one professor taking the initiative to visit a rehearsal.
It would be great if we could think of something sustainable, that will grow over the long haul and become part of the culture.
Jim Petosa posted on January 25, 2011 at 8:24 am
Sure, Lynn – Or we can certainly create performance based on the exploration of similar or identical theme.
I remember the opera production of MIDSUMMER that was totally based on the visual motif of one of your graduate painters. It was her depiction of the Norwegian night sky…fanciful and perfect for the production.
Phyllis Hoffman posted on January 26, 2011 at 9:54 am
The successes of the collaborations Jim refers to that include opera productions, Incite, the Fringe et alia suggest that we need a consistent condition of community at CFA. We did discuss the possibility of a freshman course in the arts and humanities that would bring students from all three schools together. Such a course could replace the required freshman writing course which is now taught topically with writing assignments always based on assigned readings. It could be expanded into a one-year CFA freshman requirement and could fulfill the multi-purposes of integrating our students, filling the void with much their needed relationship to the humanistic tradition and accomplish the goals of the writing seminars. This is a tall order and requires highly skilled team teaching, but there are successful models elsewhere to emulate.
I agree with Patricia that CFA events are not part of the BU student experience but there is evidence that we could develop this broader sense of community through our events. It takes enormous work, but we have in the past promoted Symphony Hall events among students and music-loving faculty members who filled Symphony Hall for performances such as Mahler’s 2nd Symphony. We could organize a task force of such colleagues to create a coherent approach to drawing the University community into our fold.
Lydia Diamond posted on February 3, 2011 at 2:54 pm
I don’t want to just blog because the Dean will be disappointed if I don’t… but I’m a pleaser… so I’m trying to be inspired when I actually have a moment to be inspired. Have we ever had cross-discipline panels, say w/ provided paper bag lunches for students (perhaps a little curricular bribing for attendance), where three or four professors from across disciplines have a panel discussion about something central to the work…. like process…. how do we make a play, a painting, a symphony, a sculpture. Why? What level of collaboration is necessary, when? Why do we teach? Etc.
Phyllis Hoffman posted on February 6, 2011 at 9:54 pm
I love Lydia’s idea. It could, for starters, have a trail run on one of the weekly Composers” Forums that take place on Tuesdays at noon or 12:30.