By Rachael Denny
It all started in 1972 when the Cleveland Ballet was formed. The School of Cleveland Ballet is filled with talented students, faculty and artists who are committed to perfecting the art of ballet. I got the chance to interview Leslie Schurman, the event coordinator for the Cleveland Ballet. As the event coordinator, Leslie gets to experience event planning along with administrative work.
“But what I love most about the job is the experience I’m getting with event planning,” Schurman said. “For example, right now I am helping to plan our VIP reception that will be held after our performance at Playhouse Square on April 27th. The VIP reception will not only give the community a chance to meet our two guest principal artists Carlos Lopez and Adiarys Almeida, but members of our Youth Company and staff as well.” Schurman mentioned how detail oriented event planning is and most people do not realize how much thought is put in behind the production.
The Cleveland Ballet hosts a multitude of events, but one event stands out from the crowd. The Black and White Gala, which will be hosted this October. It’s a weekend long event featuring past dancers, teachers, parents and staff members. There are also spring and winter performances along with smaller performances such as shows at local nursing homes and meet and greets in Cleveland. Obviously, an event cannot be successful without accompanying promotion.
“We have a marketing chair who is also a board member and she does a really good job of reaching out to people using a ton of different outlets,” Schurman mentions. “We advertise on the radio, we have articles written in the newspaper, magazines and of course, social media. We have a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and we are working on getting a Pinterest. We also have an e-mail database to send out weekly e-mails. And although we do focus a lot on technology, we also advertise with things such as flyers and postcards that parents and students take and hang up in their community.” Go check out the Cleveland Ballet on social media or their website, clevelandballet.org.
“But what I love most about the job is the experience I’m getting with event planning,” Schurman said. “For example, right now I am helping to plan our VIP reception that will be held after our performance at Playhouse Square on April 27th. The VIP reception will not only give the community a chance to meet our two guest principal artists Carlos Lopez and Adiarys Almeida, but members of our Youth Company and staff as well.” Schurman mentioned how detail oriented event planning is and most people do not realize how much thought is put in behind the production.
The Cleveland Ballet hosts a multitude of events, but one event stands out from the crowd. The Black and White Gala, which will be hosted this October. It’s a weekend long event featuring past dancers, teachers, parents and staff members. There are also spring and winter performances along with smaller performances such as shows at local nursing homes and meet and greets in Cleveland. Obviously, an event cannot be successful without accompanying promotion.
“We have a marketing chair who is also a board member and she does a really good job of reaching out to people using a ton of different outlets,” Schurman mentions. “We advertise on the radio, we have articles written in the newspaper, magazines and of course, social media. We have a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and we are working on getting a Pinterest. We also have an e-mail database to send out weekly e-mails. And although we do focus a lot on technology, we also advertise with things such as flyers and postcards that parents and students take and hang up in their community.” Go check out the Cleveland Ballet on social media or their website, clevelandballet.org.