Whitney Llewelyn

by Christi Marsico
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 1:04 PM MDT

Whitney Llewelyn has been a lover of the arts since she can remember, singing in choirs and performing in school plays.

Llewelyn grew up in Gillette and had a vested interest in the town's CAM-PLEX Heritage Center. The facility features year-round entertainment, concerts, Broadway plays and musicals for all ages.

Llewelyn gained hands-on technical backstage experience since the age of 14 from the center, and from 2001-06, she was a stage and production manager for CAM-PLEX.

Having moved to Casper and being the mother of two sons, she soon took her passion for the arts in a new direction.

She is co-director, alongside her mother, Phyllis Colpitts, for the Wyoming Arts Alliance (WAA).

"My mom and I keep each other going," Llewelyn said. "We set a deadline and try to beat each other with it."

Llewelyn has been working with WAA for almost a year. Teaming up with her mother, who has been involved with the organization for 13 years, has aided her goals of keeping the arts alive in the state.

The Wyoming Arts Alliance is a nonprofit network of arts presenters and artists. WAA’s purpose is to aid the development of quality arts programming, arts education and promotion of block booking, which is bringing the same artist to many organizations throughout the state for lower prices.

Llewelyn works mainly from her home and most enjoys the flexibility and availability her job offers while raising her sons, ages 1 and 3.

The biggest changes she has seen in her job revolve around organizations realizing there is funding available for them to bring more artists into their community.

Last month, Llewelyn was a winner of 10 scholarships to attend the Americans for the Arts Convention in Philadelphia.

The scholarship was awarded to Llewelyn for being an emerging leader in an underserved community. It included travel and lodging to the convention, where she had a chance to network with peers and gain professional development ideas and skills.

Llewelyn focused on seminars about advocacy work, education for leadership, public art and community development.

Her favorite speaker at the convention was the mayor of Philadelphia, Michael A. Nutter, who shared how implementing public art has lowered the graffiti crime in the city.

Arts camaraderie

Llewelyn came back fired up from the American for the Arts Convention. She plans to address the Legislature next February, with focus on fundraising, support and involvement from advocates and communities.

"My personal goal is to increase the state budget for the arts and see that funding trickle down," Llewelyn said.

Finding arts that work in Wyoming has been at the heart of what Llewelyn is trying to accomplish.

She noted the big three factors for arts in Wyoming are availability, free or low priced admission and family-oriented events.

For guidance in these areas, Llewelyn has bonded at the Philadelphia convention with John Barsness, who is the executive director of Montana's arts, based in Bozeman.

"Montana is close to Wyoming in size and situations, and John has been a great support," Llewelyn said.

Pulling support from family and colleagues, Llewelyn's mother is touring the state to promote the arts until Sept. 1.

With a deep desire for the arts and community to develop each other, Llewelyn is eager to promote, encourage and make communities aware of what they have available and what they need.

"All artists are important, and it all matters and touches somebody," she said.

For more information, visit the Wyoming Arts Alliance Web site, www.wyomingarts.org.

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