In recent years, UC Davis’ very own Entertainment Council, commonly referred to as EC, has brought myriad shows, buzzworthy names (Snoop Dogg, The Shins, Bon Iver) and ever-popular film screenings to our campus.
In this respect, we can rest assured that the 2012-13 year will be no different. Nevertheless, the coming months will see several positive changes in EC’s overall strategy, which involve more regular entertainment events on campus, promotional giveaways for shows in the region and increased networking to help bring more great experiences to our students.
One of the major factors in this expansion is EC’s relatively new collaboration with Bay Area entertainment firm Another Planet, whose long list of credentials includes San Francisco’s Outside Lands music festival. Together, the two have been promoting Jane’s Addiction and Morrissey, along with other upcoming performances at UC Davis.
“The mission of the EC is to connect students with entertainment, so we have tried to work with Another Planet to help promote the shows they bring to Davis and hook students up with discounts and free tickets,” said EC Director Henry Chatfield.
This teaming up represents an exciting time for the group and campus life in general. Even though the quarter is young, we’ve already begun to reap the rewards of these new plans.
As soon as the year started, EC began giving away tickets for the famed Treasure Island music festival in inventive ways, raffling them off during campus events such as The Buzz and even arranging scavenger hunts with clues leading to tickets at various locations on campus.
There have also been other ticket giveaways for Wiz Khalifa at the Power Balance Pavilion and the newly created Mfalme Fest, which showcased a collection of the country’s most forward-thinking independent rap acts (Wale, Curren$y, Dom Kennedy and more).
EC reintroduced live music to the school week with free afternoon music performances on the Quad. Last Monday marked the first of the series, with blues-rock group Tumbleweed Wanderers providing the CoHo crowd with an hour-long set of music.
“I really enjoyed their smaller shows at the Oddfellows Lodge in past years – Best Coast, Geographer– and I’m glad they’re bringing back more low-key shows of that kind along with the larger ones,” said Megan Nguyen, a fourth-year art studio and design double major.
According to EC Cinema Director Andrea Hasson, there is even more good news on the entertainment front this year in the form of on-campus film screenings. Last night’s screening (The Dark Knight Rises) was perhaps one of the largest-profile movies to be shown on campus after being released earlier in the year.
“This year I’m looking forward to showing more movies that make people feel like a kid again,” Hasson said. “Seeing a movie on a big screen in a room full of your peers makes an already-great movie so much better.”
Students hoping to get involved with EC have much to look forward to.
“We have a ton of volunteer opportunities from promoting upcoming shows to working with artists and helping to set up day-of-show,” Chatfield said.
Curious students and potential volunteers can check out Entertainment Council’s page on Facebook, where they can keep up-to-date on all the latest developments, or they can follow the group’s Twitter for regular news on events and volunteer meetings.
ANDREW RUSSELL can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.
