Editor's note: This story is featured in OU Daily's Best of Oklahoma guide, which is available around campus in March-April. Check out other featured stories at the bottom of this article.
Since the early planning stages of Best of Oklahoma, my goal has been to highlight the creativity and innovation that I believe puts Oklahoma at the cutting edge of the arts and entertainment, food and beverage and travel industries.
Ballet has been a central part of my life since I was 3. I grew up in Wichita, Kansas, and moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to attend a pre-professional ballet school when I was 16. Like many dancers, I didn’t plan on going to college.
I later changed my mind and decided to attend OU because of the reputation of its performing arts. OU was the only place I ever applied.
My understanding of Oklahoma arts far preceded my move to the state. Oklahoma City Ballet and Tulsa Ballet are highly renowned and pull in artists from all over the world. They have been on my radar for as long as I can remember.
As I wrestled with how I wanted to introduce this publication, something I knew I wanted to communicate is that quality is not dependent upon scope. Arts, entertainment and food may not be leading industries in Oklahoma, but the size does not negate the excellence.
During my time in Norman, I have worked as a bartender and server, and have often been asked where I am from and what brought me here. More often than not, people are surprised to hear that I moved to Norman to continue my dance training, which tells me that even within the state, arts and entertainment scenes are underestimated.
Since moving to Norman, my belief in the strength of Oklahoma arts and culture has only been affirmed. Within Norman alone, we have the Norman Music Festival and Second Friday Art Walk. Oklahoma’s two metropolises are growing, and continue to develop a rich restaurant culture.
This is the OU Daily’s second edition of Best of Oklahoma. The publication draws inspiration in part from The New York Times’ “36 Hours,” a series that gives an agenda for what to do in 36 hours while visiting cities worldwide. Most, if not all, of these are tourist destinations, driven by the desire for world-class experiences in arts, entertainment and food.
I have thought a lot about what it means to create a guide for a place that does not have a large tourist industry. Here in Oklahoma, the tourism we have is typically sports-based and seasonal.
The common thread that I see in this publication’s stories is a focus on community. Oklahomans are not building an economy supported by visitors who arrive with their wallets ready. Rather, they are looking around to see what will be beneficial to their area.
We live in an individualistic society, with competition driving industry. One of the beauties of living in a state not powered by tourism is the ability to look inward, which I believe helps the authenticity of Oklahoma stay at the surface very naturally.
Oklahoma is not fueled by fame, it's fueled by community.
This publication touches on restaurants and cafes; performing, visual and tactile arts; state parks and travel; and the leaders, entrepreneurs and artists that are telling stories shaped by the people around them. The points of pride are not fame or prestige, but rather the successful investment in the community and its future.
This story was edited by Shelby Emery and Karoline Leonard. Mary Ann Livingood and Nikkie Aisha copy edited this story.
