Arts Fest’s new director looks to build on beloved event while sticking to tradition

The Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts kicks off this week with a new executive director at the helm.

Pamela Snyder Etters started her new role in February, taking over for Rick Bryant, who had been executive director since 2005. The Penn State alum quickly went to work, leading efforts to develop a mobile app for this year’s event.

Ahead of her first Arts Fest as an organizer rather than a visitor, Etters spoke with the CDT about the planning process, future of the festival and her favorite parts of the event, which kicks off Wednesday with Children and Youth Day. The answers below have been edited for length and clarity.

CDT: I’d love to hear a little bit about you and your background — sort of how you came into this role.

Etters: I was the executive director for the Altoona Symphony Orchestra for about 10 to 12 years, I can’t remember exactly how long. And I really enjoyed working in that capacity and sort of managing and leading an organization. It’s a little bit of a different circumstance because the symphony was in, I would say, a little more of a stressful situation where they were failing a little bit at the time. ... I was really able to use some of my creativity to revive them in ways that they may have hesitated to explore previously.

So I had a great time, sort of working with them, bringing back a lot of their community and educational programs. And then, while I was there, I was asked to join the board for Citizens For the Arts in Pennsylvania, which is a statewide arts advocacy organization. In that position on their board, I grew to really enjoy the advocacy work. I got to know a lot of people across the state doing different things — just professionals in art and in so many different capacities. And then I actually ended up taking over when their director retired to be their executive director for two years during COVID. And I worked from home, and I was very isolated. And I think what I discovered is I really love working with people.

So, Rick Bryant, who’s the former (Arts Fest) director, was also a board member for Citizens For the Arts, he still is. And he had sort of mentioned to me that he was retiring and was maybe hoping Citizens would sort of put out there that, ‘Hey, this is a new opening, if anyone’s interested.’ And he sort of jokingly mentioned like about throwing your hat in; I think he was kidding at first. And then I was like, I really miss people. I love working in communities. I have done not festivals like this, but I have done like big multi-day events. I used to be a promoter for the Tour de Toona, which is a big professional bike race. So I was like ... I’m kind of curious about it. And I asked him questions and talked to my husband, and we just both decided that it was probably a good thing for me to go for — partly because again, I just needed to be around people again. And I needed to be able to utilize my creative energies to bring them to an organization again.

CDT: How did the planning process work? Were you coming into an Arts Fest that was starting to be planned already?

Etters: It was definitely already in the works. To be honest, the Arts Fest is a well-oiled machine. There’s only three cogs — myself and two other women: Carol Baney, who is the director of operations, and Jennifer Shuey, who is the director of development. And, you know, when I first met them, I talked to them about like, you know, what do you do here? What are all the duties you have? And they told me, and then I was like, ‘So what do I do?’ It was kind of funny at first because they just are incredible. ... So for me, it was kind of an easier transition because they had already sort of started the ball rolling. I definitely threw a few kinks into the works, but they were all like constructive, positive, moving forward kind of things.

The biggest one that I threw at them was the development of a festival mobile app. And so that, on top of all the other bits and pieces of planning — securing sponsorships and things, it definitely was extra. But, since I’m still really diving in and learning all of the inner workings of the festival, I took on the festival app as sort of my main project. Because in doing that, I was able to really learn ... all of the intricacies of the festival by virtue of having plugged them into the app. So, it worked out to be a really great sort of fast-track learning experience for me and a better understanding of all that goes into the festival.

CDT: And so the app will be up and running for this year’s event?

Etters: It’s already up and running ... and the best part about it is it actually updates in real time. ... So, if you lose a child, God forbid, you know, we can put that out there ... there’s a major weather alert, we can send that out, (or) somebody wants to offer a discount for the next hour, we can put that out. But there’s a lot of great features with the app that allow us to sort of communicate elements of the festival like we couldn’t before. And then, it also allows the festivalgoer to customize their experience. They can go in ahead of time, select all the events they want to go to, all the activities they want to participate in. And on the bottom of it, there’s a little “My Festival” tab, and everything they’ve picked shows up right there — so they don’t have to keep searching through everything over and over again… It’s really cool.

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CDT: So, what else are you excited for at Arts Fest this year?

Etters: We have a lot of new musical acts. ... It’s great when there’s somebody new that comes into it ... I can be a little bit of a scapegoat in that if people love it? Great. If they don’t, I can also be like, ‘Well, we’re just trying some new things.’ And the reality is ... we stick to traditions — we really want to make sure that the basis of the festival is always there. There’s going to be a lot of the traditional acts, people that are just really loved by the audience. We’re gonna make sure that just all the little pieces that we know are absolutely beloved, and when people come to the festival, it’s like, ‘Oh, yes, this is my arts festival.’

We take really good care of the artists, we make sure everyone is paid fair and that things are reasonably priced for anybody that wants to join in. We want to make sure that they are compensated fairly, and that they’re our priority. But we want to make sure we’re always drawing in the potential for new crowds. You know, part of our goal is to bring people to Centre County, and not just for the Arts Festival but to showcase everything that Centre County has to offer beyond just the festival. I think ... having a nice new fresh group lineup will be really great. A lot of new activities. ... We are partnering with (Tempest Productions in State College), and they’re doing this Alice in Wonderland journey. And it starts at Tempest but you travel all throughout downtown State College, and you get to meet Humpty Dumpty, Tweedledee and Tweedledum. You chase the White Rabbit; you get to have tea at the Mad Hatter. There’s crafts and stuff involved. ... It’s a really cool like 90-minute, actual interactive journey that you take.

CDT: What is your personal favorite part of Arts Fest?

Etters: OK, so I am an artist. I am a painter and a muralist. And, so honestly, my favorite part is the sidewalk sale and exhibition. I’ve been coming to the Arts Fest for years; I’m a Blair County native. And I have traveled there year after year. I’m also a Penn State alum. So, I’ve been part of the Arts Festival for a long time. And I love just going and visiting with artists, seeing ... what’s new, what they have to offer. Last year, I actually bought two paintings while I was there. ... We always enjoy going and making sure that we’re supporting the artists first and foremost. And I say we, I mean, my husband and I and my family. So yeah, honestly, that’s like my personal favorite — just being able to see the 300+ artists that are there showcasing their talents, and then getting to pick something for my house.

CDT: Moving forward, what do you see is the future of Arts Fest?

Etters: I would say that I’m definitely somebody that’s very partner driven. I think that’s something you’ll also see this year is we also have developed a few new partnerships with some of the local businesses and in some other sponsors in ways that are beyond just the monetary contributions, just some great partnerships. So, I would love to continue to develop partnerships with the downtown region, the downtown businesses — expand the reach of the festival, without necessarily expanding that core footprint.

You know, the festival route is what it is, and it would be very challenging to expand on road closures. But, there are really creative ways that we can partner with other businesses throughout downtown and make sure that they are a more significant part of the ongoings of the festival. So I think that we’re definitely interested in doing that. We really want to listen to what the community is asking for. So, I’d love to take time to talk to folks, really hear what they see as the future. You know, one of the big things for some of our locals is that they hesitate because of the parking ... parking is always an issue in State College. And ... you can’t ride a bike through the festival. ... So, one of the things that we’re looking at for next year is working with the downtown bike shop to offer valet bike parking so that people can bring their bikes, and then they can drop them with somebody that will secure them for them, keep an eye on things, you know, and then maybe the bike shop can make out a little because they could offer a tune up. ... So even little things like that — just finding ways to make sure that our partnerships can be meaningful and they’re true partnerships; it’s not just the festival asking them to give — but that we’re finding ways to really make sure that it’s a two-way back and forth.

CDT: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Etters: I would just love to encourage the local crowds to get downtown — and especially on the days like when it’s not as busy — if there’s any opportunities for them to come on the Children and Youth Day (on Wednesday or) on the Thursday. ... That’s when the crowds are a little lower, and the local support would mean a whole lot to the artists and to the food vendors and all the people that are at the festival. And, it’ll be easier finding parking on those days. And that’s not to discourage them from coming on the weekends. And, I would love to encourage people to download the app so that they can always have the festival at their fingertips.