ASHLEY WALDEN | STAFF REPORTER

“Eight before you graduate.”

This mnemonic device reminds students of the cultural events Butler University requires before they graduate.

However, Jordan College of the Arts students must attend many more arts events than the standard eight.

Students in JCA visit performances outside of Butler, in the Indianapolis Metro area.

They must complete a total of eight Metro Indy Arts Events while at Butler, with two each of art, dance, music and theatre.

Furthermore, Art+Design, arts administration, dance and music music majors all have special yearly attendance requirements for attendance to on-campus events.

Ron Caltabiano, the dean of JCA, said it is important for students of each arts discipline to gain an appreciation for the other disciplines. “The arts all express the same things,” he said. “They simply express them through different means.”

Sophomore music education major Monica Livorsi said she enjoyed observing different art forms.

“I had never seen an opera or a ballet before,” she said. “It was cool to experience all the different kinds of art we have at Butler.”

Another sophomore music education major, Alicia Hamaker said she believes attending performances helps students have “a well-rounded appreciation for art in general.”

However, she said she sometimes finds it difficult to fulfill all of the requirements, due to her busy schedule.

“There are only a few theatre performances each year, so if you miss one, it’s easy to get behind,” she said.  

Autumn Phelps, a sophomore Art+Design major, agreed that it takes great scheduling tactics to stay organized and attend events.

She has yet to complete any Metro Indy requirements—but she has skillfully scheduled and attended on-campus events.

“Because of my busy schedule—classes, working, a sorority and commuting from off campus—I have to really plan about a week in advance if I’m going to be able to attend an event,” she said.

Sophomore Rose Knight, an arts administration major, said she loves attending events, particularly ones that interest her.

She said she thinks her friends that are not art majors seem to lack an interest in attending events and performances.

She noticed that many of her non-JCA friends appear to lack interest

“More campus involvement is needed, because people outside of JCA are not generally excited to attend events,” she said.

She said she assumes students are disinterested in seeing, for example, a whole concert of an older genre of music.

“The artists need to find ways to bring excitement to the events, and it needs to be a different way of advertisement and a different way of presenting the art— events need to appeal to the entire campus,” she said.

Knight believes Butler could improve the variety of events to choose from on campus.

“I think that we need more events with more cultures from around the world, with more international styles of art,” she said.

Knight also speculates that having artists represent art “Through the Ages” would increase interest in event attendance.

“We need events that represent art from the 1800’s through today— music from Mozart to Beyonce,” she said.

Caltabiano said he instituted the Metro Indy requirements for arts students because it is “vitally important for students to witness thearts as they exist off-campus in a city setting.”

“There is so much that’s going on in Indianapolis,” he said. “The campus is not the city.”

Attending these events shows students “the fullness of what the city to offer.”

Elizabeth Watts, senior arts administration major, said these events “make us explore what we have in Indianapolis, as we get outside the ‘Butler bubble’ to experience all the city has to offer.”

She especially loves going to the old Phoenix Theatre for theatre and musical performances.

As an arts administration major, she studies and enjoys all of the different arts; attending these performances has helped her to develop a “deep respect” for artists’ ability to perform.

“Although all artists are creative, passionate and smart, we all have different specialties…it’s not easy to perform, and it takes dedication and a drive to do that,” she said.

She finds that Butler has great on-campus performances as well.

“I think Butler has a great variety of musicals, ballet and theatre. One of my favorite is the Butler percussion ensemble performances, they have a variety of music, so it’s always different,” she said.

When Knight attends a live performance on Butler’s campus, she appreciates the artists’ passion for their craft.

Knight said of artists, “They love what they do, and it shows. You can tell when the artists give 110 percent when they perform.”