Sometimes it feels as if public arts funding is like the weather: Everybody talks about it, but nobody does anything about it. Well, here’s a way for you to do something. The City of Austin Cultural Arts Program is again seeking Advisory Panelists to review applications for arts funding by the city. It’s a volunteer position, and it requires a six-month commitment to wading through lots of paper, but it just may give you the chance to reward those artists among us that you feel are making outstanding contributions to this city’s cultural life. Applicants should have expertise in one or more of the following: dance, literature, music, theatre, visual arts, or mixed arts. Call 397-1465 or 397-1461.
Festival Time… Otra Vez!
If last week’s Tejano Music and Arts Festival from the Latino Arts Consortium of Austin got you eager to see more Eastside arts, take note: The Second Eastside Arts Festival will be held Saturday, Oct 18, 9am-7pm, at Metz/Martin Recreation Center, 2407 Canterbury. You can enjoy visual art by Fidencio Duran and Sam Coronado, music by Alma Tejana, and performances by Ballet East Dance Theatre, Ariel Dance Theatre, Toni Bravo, and Metz Children and Teen Folklorico Dancers, plus activities for children, food, drink, and more. And it’s free! Donations will be gladly accepted, however; proceeds will go toward community programs for youth at the Metz/Martin Rec Center. For info, call 478-8717.
Worthy Causes
The Medore von Koffler Studio and Gallery will hold a Preview Party for its fall NXT Show, with proceeds to benefit the Wimberley EMS, Friday, Oct 17. The show itself, coordinated by glass artists Jay von Koffler and Melissa Medore, is a showcase of works by more than 40 artisans from across the Southwest and will take place Saturday and Sunday, 10am-5pm, at the studio, 3.2 miles from Wimberley Square on FM 3237 (Kyle Rd.). But you can get an early peek at the wares to be displayed and enjoy fine food, beverages, live music, and a glassblowing demonstration, all for a mere $10 — and you won’t even have to drive out there yourself. Shuttles are available from Central Market. Call 512/847-7002 for info.
The Learning Curve
Austin Script Works, a new nonprofit devoted to developing dramatic scripts, will host a seminar with Dana Singer, former executive director of the Dramatists Guild, on “The Business of Being a Writer.” In a six-hour session, Singer will cover a wide range of business-related topics — from contracts to agents — faced by playwrights, composers, and lyricists who work in the theatre. The seminar takes place Saturday, Oct 18,
11am-5pm, at the Zachary Scott Theatre Center. Cost is $75 ($50 Austin Circle of Theatres members). For info, call 454-3264.
Send literary, performing, and visual arts news to: “Articulations,” PO Box 49066, Austin, TX 78765 or onstage@auschron.com
This article appears in October 17 • 1997 and October 17 • 1997 (Cover).