By Madison Sheridan ’22

New York City is like no other. I thought Austin was big, but I have never been somewhere like New York with so many people packed into such a tight space. It felt like despite the time, there were always the same amount of people on the streets. I absolutely adored the cultural diversity I witnessed, not only in the city itself, but at the APAP Conference. I met people from all over the world there, from Long Island to China.

I learned a lot while I was at the conference, from both the panels and people I met. Lately, I’ve been stressing about finding a job in the arts with my type of degree. However, it was comforting to have multiple people at the conference tell me that I didn’t need to worry about it and that there were plenty of opportunities. It seems that in the arts, it’s fairly common to find yourself in a job outside your degree.

The showcases were one of the highlights of the conference. There were Celtic magic shows, people reenacting  Greatest Piano Men, and so many a capella groups. I loved seeing the diversity in talent on-stage  as well. I feel like you could find pretty much any artistic form you wanted if you looked closely enough and knew the right people. My favorite performer was  Voiceplay, an a capella group I follow. It was a joy being able to watch them perform.

Of course, how could you go to NYC and not see a Broadway show? I spent most of the money I made over the holiday break on tickets to see HADESTOWN, BEETLEJUICE, and MEAN GIRLS, but it was so worth it. They were all such engaging, incredible shows. I hope they all perform in Austin while I’m still studying at UT. 

Ultimately, this experience  was worth the trip--despite my fear of flying by myself and being alone in a big city. You never really feel alone in NYC, regardless of the number of people there are around you.