Friday Night Live
9.25.2009
Rock Band. Pink and purple balloons. Flamenco guitar. Chocolate cake and punch. Karaoke. Latin dancing.
UA campus is treating crowds of students to free food, a variety of games and a chance to dance to live Latin music. Its many activities allow students to have a chance to hang out with friends as well as meet new people on campus.
This is all a part of Friday Night Live, sponsored by the Office of Student Activities, which is the same office that brings in renowned speakers and concerts. Friday Night Live events happen 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. each Friday.
However, there seems to be little communication between the Friday Night Live staff and the other businesses on campus, such as RZ’s Coffeehouse and Club Red.
“They don’t tell me a damn thing anymore,” said Clara, the night manager of RZ’s Coffeehouse. In the past, the coffeehouse would stay open to accommodate the event, but this Friday, the closing hour was the same as every Friday night: 10 p.m. That could have been prevented if the Friday Night Live staff had given RZ’s coffeehouse more than three days’ notice.
Friday’s event consisted of two separate concerts. The first was an hour of flamenco guitar performance in RZ's Coffeehouse by Lon de Ada. The other concert featured the three-piece band Boris Silva, which played outside to turn the concrete spaces of the courtyard into a dance floor.
“We didn’t even know that there was going to be a concert in here,” said Paul Scouten, an RZ’s barista. The miscommunication detained the coffeehouse staff from closing the shop on time, since the concert lasted 15 minutes past closing time and customers continued to linger, so they could talk to the artist.
The frustration of poor communication between the businesses and the Friday Night Live events spans closing time differences and the lack of extra business brought by students during Friday Night Live.
"We don't get anymore business during those hours, so we shouldn't even stay open until 10. I would just as soon close the place down by nine," Clara said.
Club Red employee Michelle Gandy enjoys Friday Night Live events, but maintains that the store service is not necessary for the students during that time, since there is so much free food.
A line starting at the grassy sections of the courtyard stretches well past the Union door, looping around. Still, students expected more friends to attend. “I kind of expected more people to be here, but most of my friends are coming after 11, so maybe other people are too,” said Marisia Hasfarina, a graduate student.
Lollipops and balloons were on every table in the union, surrounded by groups of students playing cards, Spanish bingo and painting masks. Other students played Dance Dance Revolution, Rock Band and sang karaoke in a room filled with the murmuring sound of two languages mixing.
There were less students to attend the first two Friday Night Live events this semester, said the program coordinator.
“We ordered 300 foodstuffs as opposed to the 500-600 that we ordered on average last year,” said Trisha Blau, Friday Night Live program coordinator. “It’s kind of hard to tell how many people are here, since they are so spread out.”
A possibility for the miscommunication between staffs on campus is the amount of employees compared to the amount of responsibilities.
The core group of employees is relatively small for Friday Night Live events. Blau has four students on staff who always set up the food tables, serve the food and arrange the activities, and are also the theme- creating committee. “There are usually five to 20 volunteers at each event, but this semester we’ve had eight to 10,” Blau said.
Two other organizations, First Year Experience and Resident Interhall Congress periodically team up with Friday Night Live to create a bigger event. Resident Interhall Congress has sponsored the most popular of the events, Razorback Idol. This year they will continue to sponsor it and in addition, provide for a Valentine's Day Friday Night Live.
The decline in attendance for Friday Night Live doesn't bother the program coordinator, but RZ's night manager is clinging to it, in hopes that her employees won't have to work overtime.
It's a good list in the lede, but it goes on too long. Plus, I have reservations about tying it to BBB. Already, it's history and your story hasn't even run yet. See if there's another entry point.
ReplyDeleteUA campus IS treating...
--UA campus treats crowds of students to free food, a variety of games and a chance ...
Flat. Sounds like a brochure.
--The entire experience suits a variety of interests with its many activities, allowing people a chance to hang out with friends on campus as well as meet new people.
Keep a consistent verb tense from one graf to the next. Suddenly we're in present..
--Lollipops and balloons are on every table in the union, surrounded by groups of students’ playing cards and Spanish Bingo,
They are not obvious to the reader. Explain.
--Despite the obvious success of the first couple FNLs of the season,
Dangling modifier:
--Despite the obvious success of the first couple FNLs of the season, the program coordinator said the numbers are slightly down from last semester.
You need to explain why attendance is down. That could be the angle to the story.
--We ordered 300 foodstuffs as opposed to the 500-600 that we ordered on average last year,” said Trisha Blau, Friday Night Live program coordinator. “It’s kind of hard to tell how many people are here, since they are so spread out.”
This last section takes a surprise turn. Needs to be incorporated better into the story.
Overall, I think this is a topic still in search of an angle, April. It feels pretty flat up top and then meanders into a few possibilities for more interesting fodder, but nothing goes very far. Is it attendance? Is it poor coordination w/ other entities? Spend more time working out the angle of this.
Okay, this is a workable angle
ReplyDelete--However, there seems to be little communication between the Friday Night Live staff and the other businesses on campus, such as RZ’s Coffeehouse and Club Red.
But it needs to be expressed up top. Instead we have an explainer on what FNL is. that can be worked into the story as you go.
last name?
said Clara,
If FNL is every Friday why was the coffeehouse caught unawares? Is it because FNL's location changes? Need to explain.
--“They don’t tell me a damn thing anymore,” said Clara, the night manager of RZ’s Coffeehouse. In the past, the coffeehouse would stay open to accommodate the event, but this Friday, the closing hour was the same as every Friday night: 10 p.m.
Okay, some more confusion. Are we talking about the same night here? You say RZs didn't have enough warning, but they hosted the event?
--Friday’s event consisted of two separate concerts. The first was an hour of flamenco guitar performance in RZ's Coffeehouse by Lon de Ada.
Okay, it becomes clearer as the story goes on. But it could be rewritten. and it needs to be explained how a concert DOES get scheduled in a venue when the venue doesn't know about it.
two words
--anymore
Verb tense switch:
--A line starting at the grassy sections of the courtyard stretches well past the Union door, looping around.
We need a transition between these grafs:
Club Red employee Michelle Gandy enjoys Friday Night Live events, but maintains that the store service is not necessary for the students during that time, since there is so much free food.
A line starting at the grassy sections of the courtyard stretches well past the Union door, looping around. Still, students expected more friends to attend. “I kind of expected more people to be here, but most of my friends are coming after 11, so maybe other people are too,” said Marisia Hasfarina, a graduate student.
"fewer" not less
--There were less students to attend the first two Friday Night Live events this semester, said the program coordinator
Seems off topic
--
The decline in attendance for Friday Night Live doesn't bother the program coordinator, but RZ's night manager is clinging to it, in hopes that her employees won't have to work overtime.
April, this story is better but still needs a lot of work. You quote Blau talking about attendance, but you need a response from FNL folks answering the complaints from RZ's -- and the bigger problem of communication. If they didn't want to comment on it, then you need to state that.