May 1, 2019

Arts Council Thanks Community For Making 49th ArtsFest a Success

To the Editor:

The Arts Council of Princeton staff and its board of trustees thank everyone who helped make the 49th Communiversity ArtsFest such a great success. As a nonprofit that relies on community support, we are so grateful for the collaboration that enabled us to produce another incredibly inspiring event.

The students of Princeton University, Mayor Liz Lempert, and our municipality’s incredible police, fire, and facilities departments worked tirelessly to ensure that the day ran smoothly.  We couldn’t do it without their continued support.

We extend a huge thanks to event coordinator Ann Marciano, who did a superb job handling all the moving parts and addressed issues both big and small with a smile and unending grace. We also thank Arts Council staff and volunteers, whose time and energy helped to pull off Central Jersey’s largest and longest-running cultural event.

We receive important financial support from our sponsors. For a complete list, please visit artscouncilofprinceton.org. We especially acknowledge our major sponsors — AT&T, Baker Auto, RWJ/Barnabas Health, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Princeton Garden Theatre, and Palmer Square Management.

Communiversity started as the “Art People’s Party” held on the lawn of Nassau Hall in 1970. Fast forward 49 years, and now more than 40,000 attendees join us in downtown Princeton to revel in the arts in all forms. There were live performances on seven stages, plein-air painters, chalk murals created in real time, local artists proudly displaying their work, hands-on activities for attendees big and small, and interactive, collaborative artmaking. Communiversity is a day when we truly realize the potential of building community through the arts, fulfilling the ACP’s driving mission.

Of course, at the Arts Council’s Paul Robeson Center for the Arts, we celebrate the arts every day. If you’ve never been to the Robeson Center, or haven’t been in a while, stop by! We’d love to show you all the exciting things happening here year-round.

Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of Communiversity! We’ve already started thinking about how to make it particularly special. If you have ideas to enhance the event in recognition of this milestone, drop us a line at info@artscouncilofprinceton.org.

And finally, a big thanks to everyone who attended Communiversity. Your enthusiastic participation makes it the lively town-meets-gown event that it is.

Jim Levine
Executive Director
Arts Council of Princeton