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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 1985)
Arts Council celebrate Arts Week By LYNN RAE POVEC Stall Writer National Arts Week (Sept. 22-28), proclaimed by President Reagan, marks the 20th anniversary ol the National Endowment lor the Arts. Locally, Brazos Arts Week, pro claimed by mayors Gary Halter and Marvin Tate, marks the Endow ment's anniversary as well as the 15th anniversary of the Arts Council of Brazos Valley. The Arts Council is the agency in Brazos County which develops, pro motes and supports arts organiza tions, artists and activities. It does so through a variety of administrative, financial, educational and cultural programs. "For people in the arts community ... there's something going on every day," says Bonnie Yarbrough, exec utive director of the council. "My cal endar's never empty." Whether it's an exhibit, a class or a performance, something is hap pening in Bryan-College Station. In 1984, the Arts Council of Brazos Val ley brought several exhibits to our area. In February, the council co sponsored the Second Annual Inter national Arts Festival with the Bra zos Valley Art League. In Novem ber, Bryan-College Station, selected as one of 10 stops in Texas, hosted the Artrain, the nation's only travel ing rail art museum. About 8,000 people toured the exhibit during its week-long stay. The arts mean a great deal to the quaiity-of-life in a community, and Yarbrough says new residents to the community frequently ask about this area's cultural resources. Yar brough, who has been council di rector for two years, scoffs when she hears the twin cities called a cultural wasteland. Bryan-College Station ranks 113th in the arts out of 227 metro areas. The "Places Rated Almanac" rates metro areas of 50,000 or more in population, and scoring is based on the number of cultural activities available. Our area ranks higher than many Texas cities about our size (Laredo, Midland, San Angelo, Temple) and even higher than many larger cities (Abilene, Odessa, Waco, Wichita Falls). Yarbrough is pleased about that. It demonstrates the partnership be tween public and private support for the arts. She encourages active partici pation and community involvement so the broad spectrum of the arts in the Brazos Valley may best be served. "The imperative of artistic excel lence requires that we cultivate, nurture and protect the creative spirit and develop a climate that en gages our citizens in the cultural ex perience, '' she says. Yarbrough says the Arts Council of Brazos Valley has three goals: to develop an increased level of broad, local commitment to the arts in Bra- 227 metro areas. The "Places Rated Almanac rates metro areas oi 50.000 or more in population, and scoring is based on the number of cultural ac tivities available. Our area ranks higher than many Texas cities about our size (Laredo, Midland, San Angela, Temple) and even many larger cities (Abilene, Odessa, Waco, Wichita Falls). zos Valley; to serve as a resource center for arts activities by compiling registries of artists — performing, vi sual and literary; and to develop a plan for a major community cultural arts facility for the Brazos Valley. The Arts Council gives much at tention to educational programs in the area. Through these programs, presentations at schools are ex panded to include classroom activ ities such as lectures and demon strations. At Southwood Elementary School in College Station, about 600 chil dren attend a 30-minute art class ev ery day. The children learn about the visual, performing and literary arts, Yarbrough says. The council also offers classes in art, drama, drawing, painting, pot tery and weaving. The council operates on federal grants and contributions, Yar brough says. Bryan-College Sta tion's hotel-motel tax accounts for a little more than half of the council's funds. The remainder is made up by the Texas Commission on the Arts, Brazos County, memberships, pri vate foundations and donations. The council offers both individual and corporate memberships, and students also are invited to join. Vol unteers are encouraged to help with bulk mailings, clerical work and monthly calendar distribution, she says. The Arts Council of Brazos Valley plans an anniversary party Sept. 22 that will begin the many events planned to mark Brazos Arts Week. The celebration will begin at 7 p.m. at the Hilton Ballroom in Col lege Station, and the North Texas State University One O'Clock Lab Band will entertain. Admission is free to Arts Council members and $10 for guests. Later in the week, a children's the ater company out of Austin, Zachary Scott Project Interact, will perform "Razzmatazz," a musical and com edy revue. Performances will be at Lamar Elementary School in Bryan on Sept. 26. A vaudeville show is scheduled Sept. 19-21 by Stage Center at the Palace Theater. The Community- Singers of Brazos County will set up a booth in Post Oak Mall in College Station, and the Brazos Valley Art League will give the public a chance to participate in a free workshop, to be held in October. "Culture has become a very large part of the quality of life," Yarbrough says, "and people are looking for ways to bring it into their lives.'' The Arts Council of Brazos Valley prints and distributes a calendar list ing arts events and activities in the area. The calendar is mailed out be fore the first of the month to mem bers and corporate sponsors, and to the 95 other arts councils in Texas. For a copy of the calendar or fur ther information about the Arts Council of Brazos Valley, drop by 111 University Drive East, Suite 217, in College Station, or call 268- ARTS. , ' D