Logo for UMS Lobby Project

University Musical Society (UMS)

UMS is a 130-year old not-for-profit performing arts presenter that brings international artists (classical music, jazz, world music, dance, and stage plays) to the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. These events are tours of professional artists from around the world who appear with UMS in several different theaters for 1-4 performances.

Our mission is to connect audiences with performing artists in uncommon and engaging experiences. In addition to presenting about 50-60 performances each year of world-renowned artists, we have an active education program, providing free events to kids and adults. Details on all of these programs are available at http://www.ums.org.

UMS is developing a new project called the UMS LOBBY (umslobby.org) which will further the connection between audiences and our organization. While ums.org is a site for information about upcoming performances, umslobby.org (prototype in development) will be a site for conversation -- a place for people to connect with artists, with other audiences members, and with UMS itself. In addition to the online connections, facilitated through a blog and through comment areas related to each performance, as well as a historical archive and a "living archive" that features audience stories about ways that UMS has touched their lives, we will host live, in -person events related to the performances.

Current audience members and supporters of UMS.
Initially, we wish to engage people who are already coming to our performances or who have some connection to our organization, with the hope that they will deepen their connection to UMS and then talk about us with their own social networks. Ultimately, we hope to expand the site to include connections to those who may have had a connection to our organization when they were students at the University, but who may have moved on (e.g., people who ushered when they were students 20 years ago). The audiences are very different depending on the type of performance, but in general tend to be highly educated and intellectually engaged. Most live in southeastern Michigan, but we draw from beyond that region also. Our hope is to engage people who are already well connected to each other and to our organization in new ways that cause them to reflect on the value of the performing arts to their lives.

* Logo that will be used for umslobby.org website (created through wordpress) that may also be used for banners, posters, and other promotional collateral materials

* Incorporate the following words:
UMS Lobby
People are Talking. [tagline]

* evoke conversation -- be creative!

* be sophisticated, perhaps a little edgy

* be careful about type treatment for UMS Lobby -- we don't want it to appear as "um slobby"

* does not need to connect/relate to current UMS logo

* should NOT incorporate the University of Michigan block M. We are affiliated with U-M, but are not part of the University.