ALYSSA PEREZ | staff writer
Students find a creative way to share and appreciate each others’ art.
Wish there was something different To do on a Friday night without having to make the long drive to Los Angeles or Old Town Pasadena? The men of Crestview apartment J-146 have given students that option by converting their small living room into local art venue. Since December, “First Fridays at the Crest” has become a popular place for students to gather and appreciate the arts.
When a weekend tour they had planned with two other guys fell through, creators of First Fridays Kyle Neal and Shawn Morones decided they still wanted to share their music. “When the tour didn’t work out we decided we might as well plan a show, one Friday night in our apartment. Why not?” Neal said.
One show has now turned into a monthly event drawing in crowds totaling up to sixty people. Held every fi rst Friday of the month, the event has now had three successful shows with their fourth being held tonight, March 7. The show is free to anybody who wants to come, which seems to be a concept that appeals to college students looking to have a good time without having to break the bank. “We have a very small living room. Pretty much from where the kitchen and living room meet all the way to the sliding glass doors we have people sitting crunched together, sitting on each other, sitting on couches and on top of couches and then we still have people standing on the front balcony,” sophomore cinema and broadcast arts major Neal said.
Publicity for the original First Fridays event relied simply on word of mouth. The original concept centered around the idea for a group of a few friends to get together and appreciate each others talents.
“It’s a really laid back environment where hopefully we can expose some of the APU community to talent within the APU community and also outside of it as well,” Neal said.
Although the majority of performers have been students from APU, the event has showcased the work of Biola and Point Loma students as well. The original platform for First Fridays was music-centered, however a variety of art has been showcased at these events.
The last three have included short films, artwork, photography and poetry. When more than 50 people showed up to one of the events, a Facebook group was created to spread the word about upcoming First Fridays.
“We saw it as a really good opportunity for people to play and showcase their talents. In this area it can be really hard to find venues, especially if you are just starting out,” sophomore music major Morones said. Also we saw people really enjoyed themselves and it was really a great place for friends to hang out for a few hours.”
Most of the booking for First Fridays is done via Facebook. Some of the acts are friends of the guys who started First Fridays, but they work to fi nd openings for people when they receive messages on Facebook. There is no formal audition process, but the growing popularity of First Fridays could make it difficult to get a set.
“There are always people that are asking us to play and sending us messages on Facebook, so we have to take the time to filter through that,” Morones said. Although there will only be two more events in this school year, First Fridays is something all the members involved would like to see continue in the coming years.
“It’s easy to not have traditions because everyone gets so busy, but we really would like to begin to solidify this as a normal tradition that people can really look forward to and enjoy,” Morones said. “One way or the other we would really like to keep this going as long as we possible can.”
Sophomore economics major Adam Trowbridge, Kyle Neal’s roommate, provides the sound system for the event and opens up his living room for First Fridays. Trowbridge is responsible for recording all the shows, which later is posted on the First Fridays Myspace.
“People are constantly coming in and out throughout the night; it is like a revolving door,” Trowbridge said. “Even when the shows are over people still enjoy just hanging.” This Friday’s event includes performances by Caleb Linton, Shawn Morones, Johana Chase and Dan Back. Each performer is given a thirty minute set.
“It is an inviting venue for a new artist to play at and there is not a lot of pressure; it’s not very scary,” Linton said. First Fridays events normally begin at 7 p.m. and end around 9 p.m.. The success of First Fridays has been a pleasant surprise for the creators and they hope it continues to be a beneficial experience for all those who get a chance to be a part of it.
“In a way there is sort of hope that this stuff can still happen, that it is still possible to have a rag-tag venue and people will show up and enjoy themselves,” Morones said. “Eventually you will have created some kind of a fan; people that are really rooting for you and really enjoy what you have to say. It’s great that this has really caught on.”
