TCNJ used to have cool stuff like that. There was a program called "A Celebration of the Arts." I used to be a subscriber. I saw John Astin (Gomez Addams) acting out the works of Poe, and Leslie Nielson portraying Clarence Darrow.
I saw Betty Buckley sing, Khac Chi Ensemble perform, Shaffatullah Khan play Sitar and Tabla.
I was sort of well-known for reserved seats in the front row, house-left. For 2 years the tix included the 2 student productions and when I wasn't IN the show, the people who were knew where to look.
But, by my senior year, the quality of the shows had degraded seriously. The innovator who originally booked such great stuff had left the College and was replaced by a woman who always appeared to be drunk and didn't seem to really care about the program. I was once invited to "help" the program as someone who had subscribed for 3 years and when I showed up I learned they were just looking for people to do publicity for them in exchange for free tickets. Of course as a subscriber my tickets were already paid for, so I didn't waste my time. They should have their own PR people anyway.
By my senior year, the 2 student productions were no longer included in the program, and it seemed to be targeted more towards outsiders than students. They used to flog tickets to incoming freshman, offering presales at orientation and in the move-in literature. That was no longer.
I let my subscription lapse instead opting to buy shows a la carte, only to find that there was nothing left on the program worth seeing. There was one play which was to star Alan Alda and they announced THE WEEK BEFORE it opened that they hadn't actually secured the rights to do the show, and it was cancelled.
I encourage you to support any programs like this. It is so hard to provide this kind of stuff with student bodies that are more and more apathetic and don't want to leave their rooms except to get blitzed. I tried desprately to get people to come to COTA shows, and few did, and I think lack of interest is what drove the original organizer to leave, allowing the program to become a shell of what it once was.
. I think pretty much all the stuff here is free to students though, so hopefully the same thing doesn't happen.
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