Fun fact: I have never officially been an Aztec, but I did participate in the percussion ensemble at San Diego State University when I was a senior in high school. Thus, it was fitting that I gave my first-ever college masterclass for the SDSU percussion on March 13, 2023. I called it, “Creating and Marketing a Solo Performance,” and I included an action-packed power point with links to marketing and production resources I’ve found in the five years I’ve been creating solo shows. May all the Fringe Festivals in the Southwestern U.S. and beyond be inundated with creative young percussionists exhibiting their work!
As for my show on March 16…
I wrote an email newsletter last month about how nervous I felt to be performing Yes, No, Maybe So for a college audience. Would Gen Z, which has a Puritanical reputation, respond well to a show in which I’m open about my own consent mistakes?
There were a few flaws in my thinking: first of all, as a Millennial, I should know that stereotyping an entire generation may drive advertising clicks, but it doesn’t yield accurate information. I am also remiss for thinking of a college as a place where only folks in their 20’s hang out. Though the audience was small, it was LITERALLY all ages…and after all, wasn’t I spending lots of time at SDSU while I was in high school? The truth is that universities serve entire communities, and I’m glad I got to support that service.
The director of OneSDSU Community, the organization that brought me in, sent me the following after the show:
“Thank you for a great performance and conversation! I really enjoyed your performance and the group there seemed to be really engaged. Sometimes it’s not about the numbers, it’s about the impact.”
I’m grateful to SDSU for giving me the chance to have that impact, and I look forward to taking my show on the road to colleges and their communities across the country!
(Oh, and PS…I’m not a big sports fan, but HOW ‘BOUT that SDSU men’s basketball team?! Further proof that great things come out of San Diego!)
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