ViCE director looks to broaden Vassar entertainment scene

Vassar wasn’t his first choice, but when Evan Altshuler ’09 visited the school on Admitted Students Day, he was impressed. Two years later, he is the director of Vassar College Entertainment (ViCE), the organization that manages all entertainment hosted on campus and has the biggest budget of any organization at Vassar, and Altshuler has many ideas on how to use the money.

First and foremost, he hopes to involve more students in ViCE: “More organization and a bigger general body—that’s a huge concern,” he said. He also hopes to increase awareness of weekly ViCE activities such as After Hours, NoViCE and ViCE Jazz. The reform of the After Hours program, a showcase of Vassar’s acoustic performers, was Altshuler’s first major project on ViCE. Because of his work, After Hours now puts on regular performances in Matthew’s Mug on Thursdays.

Under Altshuler’s leadership, ViCE is in the process of creating a new campaign, Choose Your Own ViCE, as a way to connect with more students. The campaign will address ways in which even non-music performers can get involved by highlighting the various committees that comprise ViCE, such as Special Events, ViCE Jazz and Film League. With a better idea of the different ViCE committees, students will then be able to join the committee that best suits their interests. A new Web site, chooseyourownvice.com, will serve to direct interested students to the relevant committee.

In addition to smaller weekly events, ViCE also organizes two major events during the year, one in the fall and the other in the spring. In order to bring big names to campus, ViCE spends several months brainstorming possible performers. Altshuler said that ViCE aims to consider “mainstream accessibility…but also…people who really care about music.”

Once an act is chosen, Altshuler and his board contact their booking agents. These negotiations are no small feat. Talks with booking agents cover a wide variety of subjects: tickets, merchandising, advertising and even the personal demands of the band.

Altshuler’s involvement in the arts extends far past his work with ViCE. He is an accomplished singer/songwriter and recently released his own acoustic pop album, Shine All the Time. He is currently in the process of recording his sophomore effort, which is to be released by Ari Hest of Junket Boy Records and will be available for purchase on iTunes “whenever [he] actually starts to record it.”

Whether through his involvement in ViCE or his personal performances, it is clear that Altshuler is bent upon making his mark at Vassar. He wants ViCE to be an important facet of campus life. “We try to be accessible and hip,” he said.