MySpace used to market Hoffman teen concert
The Hoffman Estates Arts Commission has organized the village's highly successful summer concert series since 1999.
This season, artists like Shirley King, daughter of blues legend BB King, have performed to decent-sized crowds.
But many of the artists in the series -- like polka, brass and big bands -- might not be what you'd find on the iPods of many music fans under the age of 30.
Now the arts commission is hosting its first-ever teen concert, which takes place at 7 p.m. tonight at the Virginia Hayter Village Green of the Prairie Stone Amphitheater.
And the commission has launched a MySpace profile hoping to inform teens and younger residents about the concert.
Bands What Four? and Marseilles are charged with the task of keeping the kids entertained with a more modern rock sound.
Doug Schultz, Hoffman Estates' community relations coordinator, helped create the page at myspace.com/hoffmanarts. The event schedule is the highlight.
"It's very basic," Schultz said. "It might get more advanced later, but we've had it only a week."
Trying to attract a younger audience to the local arts scene is not a new problem. The Barrington Area Arts Council recently disbanded after 29 years with officials citing dwindling money and membership as its reasons.
MySpace, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., is one the most popular social networking site on the Web.
The North Suburban Library System, based in Wheeling, created a profile in June. Library system spokeswoman Judy Hoffman said maintaining social network profiles is an important way libraries can keep up with technological trends.
"We wanted to make sure we were familiar with the site," Hoffman said.
She advises that merely building a profile won't have the desire effects. Organizations need to be proactive, and Hoffman pointed to libraries drawing youngsters by hosting video-gaming tournaments and poetry slam nights.
Other area libraries, like Arlington Heights, Indian Trails in Wheeling and Schaumburg Township have dipped their toes in the cyber-pool.
Barry Gerth, Web site manager at Indian Trails in Wheeling, said MySpace has helped attract younger library users since its January creation page launch.
"It's a great way to make friends and meet people with similar interests," he said.
Schultz said he based the Hoffman Estates Arts Commission site on Schaumburg Township's model, even adding tips on how youngster can safely surf the Web.
Incidentally, Indian Trails Director Tamiye Meehan said MySpace is paying for bookmarks distributed by libraries across Illinois. About 1 million will be given out through the Illinois Library Association with tips on cyber-bullying and safe blogging.
MySpace has become a popular venue for residents to show civic pride, or other feelings. A profile focused on Des Plaines, at www.myspace.com/dplove, boasts that it's the "place to share love stories and horror stories of the city we all know and despise -- Des Plaines."
Even Schaumburg's Trickster Gallery, home to Native Americans art exhibits, has its own profile.
For Hoffman Estates, the MySpace page is a start, with Schultz saying other village groups may make pages in the future depending on the arts commission's success.
If you go
What: Hoffman Estates Arts Commission's Teen Concert featuring What Four? and Marseilles
When: 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. today
Where: Hoffman Estates Village Green Amphitheater at Prairie Stone
Admission: Free, food available for purchase
Info: (847) 781-2619 or hoffmanestatesarts.com