A $6-million overhaul and expansion apparently won’t be enough to draw Rahway Rising readers to the Union County Performing Arts Center. If our recent poll is any indication, half of readers likely won’t be checking it out, only a quarter of them will “probably” go, and a scant handful are definites to be there.
Are you more likely to go to the Union County Performing Arts Center since it expanded?
Doubt it. Neil Sedaka and Engelbert Humperdinck just don’t do it for me. 50 percent (37/73)
Probably. The new productions look interesting. 26 percent (19/73)
Nah. I don’t have any interest. 17 percent (13/73)
Definitely. Can’t get enough of that Connie Francis. 5 percent (4/73)
The 73 votes cast in the poll easily beat the previous high of 58 votes in a poll about feeling safe downtown.
Readers weighed in on what kind of programming they’d like to see at the arts center in a previous poll in January. Comedy and concerts were the leaders in that poll, followed by plays, but there were only 25 votes cast back then. Of course, any of the RR polls are completely unscientific.
Like most arts centers, UCPAC is considered a draw for downtown and the expansion – which included the $1.3-million sale to the county – was an effort to try to boost that, making it an integral part of redevelopment efforts, along with the other arts district initiatives.
I get the impression from some that the programming just isn’t what they’re looking for. As one reader put it: there’s too much programming aimed at the “blue hair” demographic. Are readers going elsewhere for the arts? Do you prefer other places in the area, like NJPAC, Paper Mill, State Theatre or Count Basie? Is there too much competition? Maybe readers just aren’t the artsy types? As Coffee Talk’s Linda Richman would say: Discuss.
As we approach the six-month mark of the blog, check out the latest poll and let us know how we’re doing.
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It’s aways easy to criticize the work of others, but there is also always room for improvement. I am only just starting to get to know Rahway and have never been to the UPAC; but I like the idea and I hope it succeeds. But I think Mark put his finger on one of the things that can be improved: the programming.Sure, there should be some stuff for the older folks (e.g. ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK’s 40th Anniversary Tour) and some stuff for the kids on the weekend during the day or summer weekdays. But there’s gotta be some more programming that would appeal to the 20s/30s crowd.A simple option: screen some independent films or even just dig up some interesting existing films (e.g. a couple years ago I saw a screening of The Battle of Algiers, which was a little known 1960s French film about the French fighting an insurgency in Morocco, at a little theater in the city, a neat film I would have not known about otherwise).And mix in some musicians with more appeal to a younger crowd: jazz, world music, etc.Easier said than done, I’m sure. But just my two-cents.
I have lived in Rahway for 3 years now and I really enjoy this town. I have just bought my first house in the area too. I looked at the events at the UCPAC and there is nothing that will entice me to go there as a 27 year old guy. They should try to get some bigger names to come there. It may cost more to entice them there but they will probably sell a lot more tickets to offset the cost. Get someone like Kathy Griffin in there as a comedy act and I am sure they place would be full. I agree with matthew, something for the 20/30 crowd is necessary.
I definitely agree with the comments above. The only reason I wouldn’t go to UPAC now is because there is nothing of interest playing. It’s the same concept with First Thursdays, when they do bring musicians it’s always suited for the older crowd. If there were more acts for our age population 20/30, then I would go regardless of renovations.
I agree with everything except the Kathy Griffin comment, haha. But seriously, I’m glad they fixed it up but they need to have better performances if they want to bring in people.
I think the larger acts will always be a tough get unless someone’s got roots here and wants to give back to the community. Heck, I’d be happy to see them bring in a dude with an acoustic guitar and have some low-key “an evening with…” type of performance. Some of my favorite shows have always been those more intimate performances such as you’d catch at The Town Hall in NYC where the act doesn’t seem so detached from the audience. It’s good to see that Ticketmaster hasn’t sunk their fangs into the ticketing process there… that should help keep things in-line for at least the time being.
UPAC’s first big star is coming May 3rd! Joy Behar. Hey, it’s a start, lol.http://www.ucac.org/
UPAC really dropped the ball – after having to perform shows ‘on the road’ in high school auditoriums, etc. and a $6 million dollar renovation, I thought they would open will something more exciting than a step competition. I went to see Lisa Loeb there a few years ago and while I didn’t love her, I loved that the theater was packed with a young crowd (to date, I have never seen so many 30-something men in Rahway – and it was Lisa Loeb, who knew?). In short, I agree with everyone’s comments. We desperately need a better mix of events at UPAC.
Lisa Loeb … haven’t heard her name in a while, but yeah that’s the type of musician I think would actually be (a) feasible for UPAC to get and (b) capable of drawing in some from the 20s/30s crowd. She’s had some success, people know some of her work, but she’s not a superstar who UPAC has no chance of getting.Something chill, acoustic like Larry suggested, or jazz … a UPAC Unplugged series would work well in a small venue 🙂
You mentioned Dar Williams in your previous post on UCPAC. I would love to see her perform in Rahway. I think any folk singers of her type would bring in their loyal fan base from as far away as NYC (especially given the ease of getting to UCPAC from the city.) The fan base tends to range from college-age to people in their 50s so a pretty wide net.
now that the arts center is air conditioned it should bring people downtown in the summer months.half the battle in this town is getting people out and about . when ever i drive home from the train station i cant believe how many people are eating at cubanos and luciano’s at least this is a start at getting people in our fair city.
realist, Dar Williams performed at the Arts Center 3 or 4 years ago, IIRC. Last year the Camden County Freeholders sponsored a live show by British folksinger Billy Bragg. The Loews Theater in Jersey City used to stage indie rock performances in its lobby. Why can’t Union County do something similar in Rahway?