Ever wonder what it takes to bring an act like the Indigo Girls or Margaret Cho to Oberlin? Most of the work is done by students on the Student Union Programming Board.
“We get recommendations from friends, word of mouth, e-mails,” said co-chair of Programming Board senior Lily Matini.
Matini and her fellow co-chair, senior Katherine Fernandez, run Programming Board with help from Tina Zwegat, the student union’s assistant director.
What many students don’t realize is that the board’s meetings are open to everyone. Any individual or representative from a student organization can come in and pitch an act they want to see on campus.
“Students ultimately have full control over what types of acts we can bring,” Fernandez said. “We have a healthy budget each year, although it is not as large as, for example, state schools. We can’t expect to bring in big, famous acts, but sometimes we manage to get comedians and musicians that are popular nonetheless.”
According to Matini, a good pitch includes information about an act, such as a music sample or biographical information, an itemized budget for the event and information about whether or not the act is on tour at the moment.
“While we’re here to help, you need to do your homework,” Matini said, “See what acts are available and how much they want. We’ll help you negotiate them down, but you need to start the legwork for us.” A good website to check for tour information, she said, is www.pollstar.com, a site that provides up to date information on big name bands as well as those that are lesser known.
The board usually votes on proposals the same day they are pitched. The vote largely depends on what kind of appeal an act has for the campus at large.
“The more diverse the audience, the better the turnout, the more tickets sold, the more money we make back, the more students we satisfy,” Matini said.
If the board votes to bring an act to campus, the next step is negotiating prices.
“Oberlin is not extremely mainstream,” Fernandez said. “You have lot of students who are into underground music of all genres. It’s these types of acts that we are most able to bring because they are not so ridiculously expensive.”
The Programming Board has been responsible for bringing a lot of quality acts to Oberlin over the years. They Might Be Giants, SR71, Lewis Black, The Evisons, Moxy Fruvous, Black Maria, Tom DeLuca, Sam Bush, Ozomatli, Margaret Cho and the Indigo Girls have all played Oberlin venues in the last four years. Singer/songwriter Poe will also be coming to campus this April.
“The Pixies performed in Oberlin in the ’80s, and David Bowie showed up because he knew the drummer,” Matini said. “There’s crazy history here. Forget the cliché; we’re speaking truth to power here. Anything’s possible.”
“Our job is not solely based on bringing acts,” Fernandez explained. Programming Board is also responsible for organizing events such as the Hales late-nighter, pumpkin picking and carving in the fall, Fun Flicks and Karaoke in Wilder Main. They also charter the buses that travel to the Here Here gallery in Cleveland, where students’ artwork is currently on display.
“There’s a lot that goes into getting good entertainment on this campus,” Matini said. “The more Oberlin students educate themselves about how to plan and execute a programming event, the more control they have over the situation.”
The Programming Board will be meeting next Tuesday, March 11 at 12:15 p.m. in Wilder to discuss events for the fall 2003 semester.