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O N A N D A R O U N D T H E C A M P U S O F A P PA L A C H I A N S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y, B O O N E , N C
WE VALUE... Arts programming that brings us together as a campus and community. The North Carolina High Country is a special place, where families have deep roots and where visitors find natural beauty, rich cultural traditions, and small town friendliness in great abundance. It is also home to a great university that values the arts as an essential element of higher education and quality of life. Every summer, An Appalachian Summer Festival brings together residents and visitors of all ages around a shared love of music, dance, theatre, film, and visual arts programming geared to almost every artistic taste and preference.
Affordable access to the arts. Key to the festival’s mission and identity is a commitment to affordable access. Ticketed performances are offered at prices substantially lower than prices for those same artists in other venues. The festival also offers a wide array of free and low-cost events designed to ensure access to quality arts programming for audiences of all ages.
Programming that elevates spirits, broadens horizons and expands our view of the world. For some, it’s the stellar entertainment typically found only in big cities that the festival brings to our corner of the world each summer. For some, it’s the ability to enjoy world-class arts programming in a spectacular mountain setting. And for others, it’s about the festival’s mission to showcase artists who may not be familiar to us – but whose performances linger in our memories for years to come!
ABOUT AN APPALACHIAN SUMMER FESTIVAL Presented by Appalachian State University’s Office of Arts & Cultural Programs, this annual celebration of the performing and visual arts is held every July in venues across the university campus, and features an eclectic, diverse mix of music, dance, theatre, visual arts and film programming. An Appalachian Summer Festival began in 1984 as a chamber music series, and retains strong roots in classical music, combined with a variety of other programming geared to almost every artistic taste and preference. Celebrating its 34th season in 2018, the festival has risen in stature to become one of the nation’s most highly respected summer festivals, acclaimed for the breadth and quality of its artistic programming. In recent years, the festival has been selected as one of the “Top 20 Events in the Southeast” by the Southeast Tourism Society. For many years, The New York Times has included An Appalachian Summer Festival in its “Summer Stages” issue, which profiles the nation’s most prominent and interesting summer arts festivals.
Festival Mission An Appalachian Summer Festival is an annual arts festival presenting and producing programs in music, theatre, dance, film and visual arts. The festival forges a unique national identity through artistic excellence, innovative programming, commissioning new works, educational opportunities, and by bringing the most accomplished and respected creative and performing artists from around the world to the Appalachian State University community. Founded on the principle of promoting young American artists, the festival supports the overall university mission, enhances the cultural life of the Appalachian community through affordable access to its programs, serves as an important gateway onto the campus, and promotes the economic development of our region.
Festival Vision: Artistic Excellence, Innovation and Engagement In keeping with its status as a university-based arts program, the festival continually seeks to enlighten and educate – a focus reflected in such initiatives as the festival’s discounts for children’s tickets, school coupons and ticket prices that are typically 30-40% lower than prices for comparable events in other venues. A rich variety of educational opportunities is part of the festival schedule each summer, including exhibitions, lectures, tours, workshops, student internships and employment opportunities for young people seeking experience in arts presenting. These experiences offer opportunities for lifelong learning and meaningful engagement with the arts. The festival holds central the belief that access to a strong and dynamic program of artistic excellence in the performing and visual arts is an important component of a vital and healthy community.