Top Ten Reasons to Give to An Appalachian Summer Festival

We're "counting down" just a few reasons why giving to the arts is so important. We know you have your own reasons, and we invite you to share them with us!

#10 - You'll be continuing the great Renaissance tradition established by the Medici Family, who dominated Florentine politics for two and a half centuries and presided over a cultural achievement equaled only by Athens in the Golden Age.

#9 - You'll be helping to dispel the notion that American Idol is the only expression of our nation's cultural life.

#8 - (For husbands everywhere): Consider this your penance for all those evenings you fell asleep during a performance. (For wives everywhere): Consider this your husband's penance for all those evenings he fell asleep during a performance.

#7 - The arts are an enduring force. Beethoven's symphonies, Puccini's operas and Bach's choral works will be around long after most things in our modern world have faded away.

#6 - Great donor benefits, including public recognition in the Festival Playbill and on the website - and depending on your giving level, benefits such as free tickets and parking privileges. If that's not enough - impress your date, spouse or concert companion with your "complimentary beverage card" or a free bus ride from the Broyhill Inn to the show!

#5 - The satisfaction of knowing that you are helping to bring world-class artists such as André Watts, Frederica von Stade, Pilobolus and Doc Watson to the festival's stage.

#4 - The knowledge that your gift helps the festival keep ticket prices down, so all the residents of our region can take advantage of arts programming and share it with their children - the audiences of tomorrow. (Children's tickets are priced at $5 or less.)

#3 - The arts reflect who we are. They are a celebration of independent thinking, freedom of expression and a democratic society. They connect us with our past, help us to better understand the world around us, reflect our highest aspirations and elevate us. In a world filled with cell phones, sound bites and multi-tasking, the arts offer us an authentic means of human expression and contact. The arts challenge our senses AND our intellect, encouraging self-reflection, critical thinking and contemplation.

#2 - You'll be helping to reverse a frightening trend in arts funding. A recent RAND report by Kevin McCarthy states that "a few very large nonprofit and commercial arts organizations are growing larger and staging ever more elaborate productions. Mid-sized nonprofit organizations, on the other hand, are facing the greatest difficulty in attracting enough revenues to cover their costs. Many of these groups are likely to disappear."

#1 - The looks on their faces: the thrill and excitement of young children as they see their first ballet, their first symphony orchestra concert or their first museum exhibition. Your generosity now will help ensure that the arts remain a part of our children's lives and futures.