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Accessing high quality arts may seem like a fantasy to some, and finding a career in the arts may seem like an even bigger dream, but a program through the Wilson Center at Cape Fear Community College (CFCC) seeks to turn those dreams into reality.
Hello Arts! is a grant program that provides access to shows and performances to nonprofits benefiting underserved populations while providing training and employment opportunities for CFCC students.
Last year, the program donated around $70,000 worth of tickets, said Zach Pluer, executive director of the Wilson Center. The special free tickets are distributed by the New Hanover Arts Council to connect community members with artistic opportunities they might not otherwise have.
Pluer said he believes access to the arts is important as it not only functions as an escape from reality but also shapes important moments throughout life by creating remarkable experiences.
“Arts are really the thing that make our lives exceptional,” Pluer said.
Hello Arts! not only gives underserved communities and young children the opportunity to experience a performance but also the chance to open their minds to possible job options within the arts, Pluer said.
“The greater goal is to first of all, inspire them to experience things that they might not normally, but also to open their eyes to the real careers that exist here,” Pluer said.
Pluer emphasized that a lot of trades, skills, and education pathways fuel the arts industry, including lighting, carpentry, food services, cosmetics, fashion design, public relations, trucking, and much more.
“A lot of people don’t realize how many careers there are in the arts, but it takes so many different professionals and tradesmen just to make a show happen,” Pluer said.
The Wilson Center is unique in its connection to CFCC as it operates as a commercial theater but also as a learning space. Pluer said the center allocates room in all its employment models for students, featuring students in backstage and technical roles as well as in operational roles like marketing.
“We’re truly dedicated to taking that time to provide them with the skills that they need to move on in a healthy, healthy workplace,“ Pluer said.
The Wilson Center hopes for a high turnover rate when it comes to its student employees, as that indicates they use the experience they have gained to move on in their career journeys, Pluer said.
The arts offer an abundant variety of practical learning opportunities, and Pluer said CFCC students and classes often use the Wilson Center in creative ways — including truck driving students practicing backing into the center’s loading bay, culinary students providing meals for touring performers, and more.
The Wilson Center also provides ample performing opportunities for students on a Hello Arts! stage in the lobby of the building before a performance, allowing young performers the opportunity to showcase their skills while working with the Wilson Center team to learn about marketing and planning the technical aspects of their performance.
“Part of Hello Arts! is making room and making space to give our students the opportunity to have access to those crowds,” Pluer said.
Students also occasionally get the chance to perform on stage in the Wilson Center and in a studio theater behind the main stage.
The Wilson Center first opened with funding from government bonds in the early 2000s, Pluer said, and its existence provides the local economic community in Wilmington millions of dollars in revenue from connected businesses, such as restaurants, hotels, ride sharing services, and more.
