Cultural Focal Point

The San Fernando Valley is known more for its shopping malls than for museums, art centers or live theaters. Say Valley culture, and people trot out the old jokes about Valley girls.

Cal State Northridge is doing its part to retire that stereotype.

Long a cultural center for the Valley, CSUN made the designation official last year by establishing a new unit, the Center for the Visual and Performing Arts. The goal of the center is to make the university’s cultural offerings more accessible to the public.

Public universities have as one of their missions service to the community, and they’re not just talking about admitting and educating students. One of the ways universities serve their neighbors is to share their resources.

But accessibility--or lack thereof--is a common problem of urban universities. First, the public has to know what the institution has to offer, then how to partake of it. Add a maze of buildings that all look alike and that bane of urban campuses, the elusive parking space, and the public is not easily served.

To this end, CSUN has for the first time produced a handsome brochure that describes its visual and performing arts offerings for the spring 2000 season. The brochure includes maps of campus, directions and descriptions of campus venues, instructions on how to buy tickets, advice on when to arrive (30 minutes early) and tips on how and where to find a parking space.

Culture at CSUN translates to an evening celebrating mariachi music, Latino comedy, Armenian dance, Korean folk tales or Filipino theatrics. It means blues, jazz or chamber music, a night of musical theater, ballet or modern dance. It means exhibits of French movie posters and editorial cartoons.

The spring season is half over, but there are still some exciting performances ahead. You may obtain a brochure by calling the CSUN Performing Arts Center’s event information line at (818) 677-3943.

Remember, a region’s culture is only as lively as the community that supports it.