There aren’t a lot of things that I can do for 12 hours straight. I’m not even sure that I can sleep that long anymore unless I’m sick or completely sleep deprived. Yet for some people it’s a tradition to participate in or attend free twelve-hour music marathons. It all started in 1978 when a group of New Yorkers came “together to create their own performing arts center.” It became a movement and a non-profit organization called Symphony Space, which has been “embraced by its cultured and educated neighbors and become the centerpiece of the Upper West Side Renaissance.” Cultural institutions like community theaters can have wonderful effects on neighborhoods and their residents, so it should be no surprise that Symphony Space is still going strong and garnering tons of support 32 years later.

Start on a High Note

There’s no way that I can describe what goes on at Symphony Space better than they do. Here’s how they put it on their History page:

A packed house listening intently as an actor conjures up the mood of a short story…the soulful notes of a jazz trumpet fading into the night…children laughing with glee at the antics of a master puppeteer…dancers creating rhythmic patterns across a darkened stage…high school students cheering one of their own as she accepts congratulations after a public reading of her work…images of cinematic brilliance flickering across a screen…families coming together to watch their kids rock out…this is Symphony Space today.

If that’s the kind of stuff that you get excited about—excited enough to sit and watch for 12 hours—then you should probably consider a job at Symphony Space. Their Employment page only has internships listed, but there’s a Production Coordinator for Performing Arts Programs posting on Idealist. It looks well suited to new grads, so give it a look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• SymphonySpace.org
• Jobs at Symphony Space (Idealist)
• About Symphony Space
• Symphony Space’s History
• Symphony Space News
• Symphony Space’s Blog
• Symphony Space’s FAQ

Have you ever been to Symphony Space?

We've identified Symphony Space as having career opportunities in the following categories:

• all employers
• arts
• drama
• events
• music
• New York
• non-profit
• production
• program development

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