27 year-old artistic guy considering Austin. Is it for me? (Houston: tenant, living in)

[artsyguy]

Don't say we didn't warn you when you find out Austin is a mid-sized city with small town options and opportunities

Austin does not have a great emphasis on theater and film. You need to reconsider Houston because it has the largest theater district in the united states. Dallas/North Texas has a hodge-podge of theater districts, performance centers, and art districts. The new state of the art performance center in Dallas is huge news for the city. University of North Texas has the largest music, film, and art scene in Texas.....the little city of Denton beats Austin in regards to those scenes (from what I have heard).

We are telling you in a direct manner that you will not be surrounded by an artist community and by people who value art in Austin. The majority are strictly into football games and bars (which isn't bad or anything). It's just not what you are looking for

Originally Posted by kupeee

Thanks for all the replies--I do appreciate it! In regards to the question, "what do I mean by an art scene?" I realized that I'm not even completely sure. That said, here's the closest answer I can give you...

First, to be clear, I'm somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to creative work. If I were solely and actor, for instance, I'd certainly go to LA! In truth, I do a bit of everything: I write, do graphic design and fine art, perform stand-up comedy, play guitar, dabble in film-making. I would, however, like to push my career more toward being involved in performance, whether that's performing my own material at open-mics, or being involved in theatre or film...I've heard that Austin has a great emphasis on theatre, film, and performance, and that's what attracts me...

There are a couple of things that come to mind when I say "art scene."

First, I want to be surrounded by people who are working on creative projects. I've been in too many situations where I wasn't surrounded by people who value the arts, and it sucks. I need community. I realize that you can do this just about anywhere, but I'd just like to live in a city where there's an abundance of creative people, not a scarcity.

Second, I want to live in a city that has an abundance of opportunities for creative types. In Albuquerque, there are opportunities (as there are in any city), but they seem far and few between, and the "vibe" just isn't my scene, if that makes sense. I realize that LA and NYC have that abundance I'm talking about, but I'm pretty sure that I have too much of a laid back personality for those scenes.

People have warned me about Austin's hype. But I've also talked to some people (whose opinions I trust) that have had some very great experiences living in Austin. So I am planning on visiting at the end of August. I think a few days in the city will tell me a lot about if it's for me...

[austinite45]

Originally Posted by twange

How so? I was trying to make the point that there are other quality creative arts organizations here that may not be as obvious,

(1) that's precisely why it's "non sequitur" (2) your perception is obviously not shared by others across the nation.

and that simply writing off the city as a sports and booze town was simplistic.

I'm not aware that anyone is "writing off the city as a sports and booze town." But sports and booze are indeed a dominant part of Austin's culture. Are you disputing that?

If you don't agree fine, but what the hell is with all the snark?

huh? what "snark"?

[thesonofgray]

kupeee, please take everything "artsyguy" says with a metric ton of salt. Most of the people on this forum (who actually live, work, and play in Austin) will tell you "in a direct manner" that artsyguy spends most of his time bashing Austin because he couldn't get a date...or something like that (from what I have heard).

Sad. But true.

Enjoy your visit!

Originally Posted by artsyguy

Don't say we didn't warn you when you find out Austin is a mid-sized city with small town options and opportunities

Austin does not have a great emphasis on theater and film. You need to reconsider Houston because it has the largest theater district in the united states. Dallas/North Texas has a hodge-podge of theater districts, performance centers, and art districts. The new state of the art performance center in Dallas is huge news for the city. University of North Texas has the largest music, film, and art scene in Texas.....the little city of Denton beats Austin in regards to those scenes (from what I have heard).

We are telling you in a direct manner that you will not be surrounded by an artist community and by people who value art in Austin. The majority are strictly into football games and bars (which isn't bad or anything). It's just not what you are looking for

FYI - Houston has the 2nd largest theater district in the nation.

[thesonofgray]

Originally Posted by austinite45

I'm not aware that anyone is "writing off the city as a sports and booze town." But sports and booze are indeed a dominant part of Austin's culture. Are you disputing that?

If that's the case, then "sports and booze" describes the dominant part of every American city's culture.

I'm reading this and laughing at all the caricatures of Austin. Why? Because I've lived here for nearly a decade now and I don't really drink. And the only sport I follow is tennis, and Austin has no ATP pro tournament.

[artsyguy]

Most people in Austin are legion to the long horns.

Originally Posted by thesonofgray

If that's the case, then "sports and booze" describes the dominant part of every American city's culture.

I'm reading this and laughing at all the caricatures of Austin. Why? Because I've lived here for nearly a decade now and I don't really drink. And the only sport I follow is tennis, and Austin has no ATP pro tournament.

[thesonofgray]

Originally Posted by artsyguy

Most people in Austin are legion to the long horns.

I'm alumni. So I'd know.

Sure people root for the horns. I do as well. Do people in other cities not root for hometown teams? I lived in Houston when the Rockets won the championships. It was a similar atmosphere then and there to when UT won the BCS national in 2006. So why exactly is Austin a "sports and booze" town again?...unless most cities share that title.

To me, a city is what you make of it. It can be a sports and booze town if you want it to be - just go hang around sports bars all the time. The option is there. On the flip side, kupeee can make Austin as artsy as he'd like it to be - there certainly are people and places here to fulfill that need if it's there. In short, over-generalizations **** me off.

[hoffdano]

I am NOT a UT alum. In fact I generally root against the orange and white.

But I do not think Austin is a sports and booze town at all - except when the Longhorns are playing football - or when their basketball or baseball teams are in the playoffs.

Austin may be a party town - but the partying could happen for many reasons. But Austin is also many other things - as people who have lived here many years know.

[artsyguy]

Awww please don't get mad at our anti-Austin posts

We are saying the sports and alcohol crowd far outnumbers the minuscule art scene. Plus if you want to attend the Blanton's receptions and parties you have to pay $10 per event or become a "member".

Houston is amazing because you have a whole other entire large scene that is dedicated to performance arts, and art. This is only because Houston has such a huge population. So in other words you have the huge sports scene, a moderately sized art scene, and other scenes thrown in there to keep the intellectuals from getting bored.

Originally Posted by thesonofgray

I'm alumni. So I'd know.

Sure people root for the horns. I do as well. Do people in other cities not root for hometown teams? I lived in Houston when the Rockets won the championships. It was a similar atmosphere then and there to when UT won the BCS national in 2006. So why exactly is Austin a "sports and booze" town again?...unless most cities share that title.

To me, a city is what you make of it. It can be a sports and booze town if you want it to be - just go hang around sports bars all the time. The option is there. On the flip side, kupeee can make Austin as artsy as he'd like it to be - there certainly are people and places here to fulfill that need if it's there. In short, over-generalizations **** me off.

[mark311]

On a side note, I've been to several Longhorns football games as I've had season tickets for a couple years, and there is no alcohol inside the stadium. Booze doesn't go along with Longhorns football. The games are really family oriented and are unlike NFL games. The crowd generally does not put up with drunk spectators at the games and will normally get them removed.

Back on topic, it sounds like you are still young and open enough to try out a city like Austin to see if it's to your liking. If it doesn't suit you, then you can move on to someplace else. You should be able to get an idea of what to expect after visiting for about a week as you have already planned.

[Trainwreck20]

and there is no alcohol inside the stadium

heh, well, I have seen a bit of alcohol in there....but, yeah, if the get obnoxious and are obviously drunk/drinking, they get arrested and/or thrown out. Alcohol is not SERVED in the stadium, anyway.....