"The True Power of the Arts"-Stephanie Gianni

Arts administrator and activist, Ben Cameron, speaks in this video about the true power of the arts and the state of the live performing arts in society. He explains that the internet and other significant technology is the biggest competition of the live performing arts because of the inconvenience having to leave one’s home or computer, rather than downloading the performance and watching it right there. Music and dance groups, theater companies, and artists struggle to compete with television, movies, and products, as they have advertisements running constantly in all areas of the mass media. Cameron believes that arts and culture will remain important in the world, as professional artists become involved in other areas like sciences or human rights to bring people together and help others. He says that the arts give humans the capacity to view each other with generosity and curiosity, as creatively is explored through acting, dance, and music. Overall, Ben Cameron believes that the arts work to create excitement, passion, compassion, sensitivity, and genuineness.

Ben Cameron is a former theater professional, public speaker, and arts activist. He began his higher level education when he received a BA from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, then continuing on to earn a MFA in Dramaturgy from Yale School of Drama. He later received honorary degrees from DePaul University in Chicago and American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Currently, Ben Cameron is the Program Director for the Arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation where he is the supervisor of $17 million grants programs for organizations and artists in dance, theater, and music. Before that, Cameron was the Executive Director of Theater Communications Group, which is a national service organization for the American nonprofit professional theater. Additionally, he has been the Senior Program Officer at Dayton Hudson Foundation, Manager of Community Relations for Target stores, and Director of the Theater Program for the National Endowment for the Arts. Lastly, he has been a nonprofit board member of the Nationals Arts and Business Council, American Arts Alliance, and Grantmakers in the Arts.

In the fall, I will be attending Boston University to study business administration and dance, in the hope of pursuing a career of arts administration. There are an abundance of internship possibilities in this field in Boston and other cities where the arts and culture are prominent. For example, I could apply for internships at the Boston Ballet, which offers internships in areas of concentration such as arts administration, marketing and management, and stage management. Another example is a graduate level, three to four month long internship at the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. As an intern here, I would develop a list of career goals and work on a project throughout my time working there. Beyond this, there are graduate level programs that offer a Masters’ degree in Arts Administration such as American University, Boston University, Drexel University, New York University, and Southern Methodist University. As of now, my long term goal is to own and manage a theater, dance company, or dance studio, which would allow me to promote dance in my community.

Link to video: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/ben_cameron_tedxyyc.html