What follows is a letter from Siobhan Olson from the center and the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County.
Hi Brian:
Thanks for listening to my criticism of Ryan Snyder’s woefully inaccurate article about the opening of the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts. We are extremely dismayed and disappointed in the quality of his reporting about opening weekend. He never contacted us for accurate information and appears to have done no research into the abundance of publicly available information on this event. His article is damagingly misleading about our event and harmful to the success of our operation.
To clarify misinformation in the article:
· The Light Up the Arts Gala with Tony Bennett presented by Hanesbrands Inc., tomorrow from 6 p.m. to midnight, is NOT sold out.
· Tickets may be purchased by calling The Arts Council in Winston-Salem, 336-722-2585, x 1109 or by showing up at the Rhodes Arts Center and purchasing tickets on the spot. No tickets will be sold at Stevens Center, people must come to the Rhodes Center.
· There is a ticket for $50 to the Late Night Party ONLY, from 10 p.m. to midnight, which includes the following. This is an extremely affordable ticket that was designed specifically to allow many people to come and join the opening party:
· Open bar from 10 to midnight
· Free gourmet food from 10 to midnight
· Dancing to 1970s/1980s disco music, presented by one of the best disc jockeys on the East Coast.
· Tickets for the party at the Rhodes Center are $125 for entry from 6 p.m. to midnight. This ticket includes:
· Open bar all night
· Free gourmet food all night
· Performances at the Rhodes Arts Center including:
No Rules Theatre Company of Washington, DC at 6:30 p.m.
UNCSA School of Drama at 7:00 p.m.
Martha Bassett Band at 7:30 and 9:00 p.m.
North Carolina Black Repertory Company at 8:00 p.m.
UNCSA School of Dance at 8:30 and 10 p.m.
A magnificent light show by UNCSA School of Design & Production
Dancing to 1970s/1980s disco music, presented by one of the best disc jockeys on the East Coast.
· If patrons would like to add the Tony Bennett concert to their party ticket, the prices for Tony including the whole party at the Rhodes Arts Center, are $300 (main floor) and $225 (balcony). This is NOT a normal tour date for Mr. Bennett. In fact, the prices for these tickets are less than comparable upcoming events that include a concert plus free food, free beverage, dancing AND other performances.
· The fact that he characterized Community Weekend, presented by Reynolds American and Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company, as only for people interested in Hannah Montana and collecting stamps shows blatant ignorance of the massive arts festival occurring on Sept. 11 and 12 at the Rhodes Arts Center. I have attached a schedule so that you can clearly see that our opening was designed for EVERYONE. We have dance, music, theatre, film, activities for children, seminars on how to get a job in the arts, winning works by the Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools, an appearance by the historic Wells Fargo Stage Coach, conversations with famous artists, tributes to African American heroes, opportunities to Fly Like Peter Pan, and much more.
· Additionally, Rocco Landesman, chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, is joining us from Washington, DC, to open the Center.
We appreciate the fact that Ryan is a reviewer of music CDs and bands; and if he had wanted to review the actual performance of Mr. Bennett and our jam-packed weekend, we would have welcomed that, because he would have seen the inclusiveness of our City of Arts & Innovation. Instead, his article merely portrayed a sarcastic, inaccurate and damaging perspective, all wrapped together in a poorly researched, sloppy piece of journalism.
We did not expect to see a story like this in YES! Weekly because we have been open with your reporting staff, prompt with our information, readily accessible for questions and interviews, and generous with access to the VIPs involved in our event. We are grateful for the accurate coverage provided by Keith Barber; and it is a shame that your paper decided to diminish his work and professionalism with Ryan’s article.
We are looking forward to Keith’s future coverage of our event and appreciate anything you can do to salvage this situation,
Siobhan Olson
Board Member, The Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
Co-Chair, Opening of the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts
336-769-6365
UNCSA School of Drama at 7:00 p.m.
Martha Bassett Band at 7:30 and 9:00 p.m.
North Carolina Black Repertory Company at 8:00 p.m.
UNCSA School of Dance at 8:30 and 10 p.m.
A magnificent light show by UNCSA School of Design & Production
Dancing to 1970s/1980s disco music, presented by one of the best disc jockeys on the East Coast.
· If patrons would like to add the Tony Bennett concert to their party ticket, the prices for Tony including the whole party at the Rhodes Arts Center, are $300 (main floor) and $225 (balcony). This is NOT a normal tour date for Mr. Bennett. In fact, the prices for these tickets are less than comparable upcoming events that include a concert plus free food, free beverage, dancing AND other performances.
· The fact that he characterized Community Weekend, presented by Reynolds American and Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company, as only for people interested in Hannah Montana and collecting stamps shows blatant ignorance of the massive arts festival occurring on Sept. 11 and 12 at the Rhodes Arts Center. I have attached a schedule so that you can clearly see that our opening was designed for EVERYONE. We have dance, music, theatre, film, activities for children, seminars on how to get a job in the arts, winning works by the Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools, an appearance by the historic Wells Fargo Stage Coach, conversations with famous artists, tributes to African American heroes, opportunities to Fly Like Peter Pan, and much more.
· Additionally, Rocco Landesman, chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, is joining us from Washington, DC, to open the Center.
We appreciate the fact that Ryan is a reviewer of music CDs and bands; and if he had wanted to review the actual performance of Mr. Bennett and our jam-packed weekend, we would have welcomed that, because he would have seen the inclusiveness of our City of Arts & Innovation. Instead, his article merely portrayed a sarcastic, inaccurate and damaging perspective, all wrapped together in a poorly researched, sloppy piece of journalism.
We did not expect to see a story like this in YES! Weekly because we have been open with your reporting staff, prompt with our information, readily accessible for questions and interviews, and generous with access to the VIPs involved in our event. We are grateful for the accurate coverage provided by Keith Barber; and it is a shame that your paper decided to diminish his work and professionalism with Ryan’s article.
We are looking forward to Keith’s future coverage of our event and appreciate anything you can do to salvage this situation,
Siobhan Olson
Board Member, The Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
Co-Chair, Opening of the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts
336-769-6365
No comments:
Post a Comment