Feb. 5, 2002
Jazzing-up the Offerings
at the University Club
U-Club Adds Jazz Night, Public Affairs Program
By Maureen Fleming
Matt Ascione sits in the corner of the dining room, discreetly strumming
softly on his guitar. Around 7:45 pm he quietly slips away, and the
sounds of Tony Bennett emerge from the speaker system. The other diners
don’t seem to notice.
A steady thump from a bass drum comes from the another
room, prompting diners to pause and ask, “Do you hear that?”
But the noise doesn’t last long, and they return to their dinner
and conversation.
The drumming is the work of Ed Crow warming up, as
he and the rest of his ensemble, the “Shapes,” arrange for
Jazz Night, an evening of music and relaxation now featured each Thursday
night at The George Washington University Club.
By 8:30 pm sharp, the first notes from Rob Holmes’
tenor sax pierce the evening’s calm, closely followed by the rhythmic
pulse of Chris Kosky’s acoustic bass, Crow’s drums, and Ascione’s
guitar.
The jazzy siren’s song calls University Club
visitors into the Mt. Vernon room, where a small but spirited crowd
already is forming. And they get what they have come for — a relaxing
evening of cool jazz.
Jazz Nights are part of a large-scale push by the
University Club to attract new members and increase the involvement
of existing members. The Club, which opened its doors in August 1999,
evolved out of the vision of GW President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg
and his desire to create a “living room of the University,”
according to General Manager Timothy Ramsey. Housed in a pair of original
pre-Civil War town homes, the Club answers this call with an elegant
dining room, pub, lounge, and library.
Managed by ClubCorp, a world leader in delivering
golf, private club, and resort enterprises, the Club was originally
under the guidance of Vice President and Treasurer Louis Katz. In September
2001 the Club moved to Student and Academic Support Services (SASS),
but maintained ties with ClubCorp. Now under the portfolio of Mike Gargano,
associate vice president for SASS, who is charged with developing community
programming initiatives, Ramsey says the Club has the best of both worlds
— the resources and support of the University, with oversight and
training provided by ClubCorp.
Gargano’s guiding strategy for the Club is to
reintroduce the facilities to the University community and reposition
it as part of the GW culture.
“Ultimately,” he says, “I hope going to the Club for
dinner, or just to relax with friends and co-workers, will become part
of the way of life at GW.”
The SASS partnership allows for more daily contact
between the Club and its most likely constituents — faculty, staff,
students, alumni, and friends of the University — and opens a line
of communication between the Club management and University administrators.
Gargano and Club management brainstormed with many departments within
the University, such as SASSComm, Communications, University Relations,
and the University Art Gallery, to develop ideas that would expand the
facility’s following.
“The Club’s resources can be used to benefit
a lot of facets of this University that many people hadn’t thought
of before,” Gargano says. “For example, the Career Center
can offer the facilities to area employers for student recruitment;
faculty and staff can conduct interviews over lunch or in one of the
private, upstairs rooms; the athletic department can host pre- and post-game
receptions; and the University’s hotels — One Washington Circle
and the GW Inn — can recommend the Club to guests as an additional
dining option in the area. Not to mention all the new programming.”
“More has happened in the last four months than
in the first two years,” continues Ramsey, as he launches into
a catalog of new initiatives at the Club in addition to the Jazz Nights.
“The University Club In the Know Series” kicked off Jan. 29
with Rep. Marty Meehan (D–MA). A luncheon conversation with prominent
leaders in politics, the arts, and civic life, the “In the Know
Series” will headline Gloria Borger, a contributing editor at US
News & World Report and author of the magazine’s bimonthly
column, “On Politics,” Feb. 11.
Every Friday night the Club features “Open ‘Mic’
Nights” in the Riverhorse Room. Leading this weekly opportunity
for visitors to test their mettle before their peers is noted local
entertainer Travis James Humphrey, with guest appearances by Ira Ostowski.
Alumni Night, every third Thursday in the Riverhorse
Room, offers discounted food and drink specials and a chance for young
alumni to socialize and network. Senior night presents a similar chance
for graduating seniors to mingle.
These new initiatives are open to Club members as
well as any member of the University community. Both Gargano and Ramsey
are quick to point out, however, that membership definitely has its
advantages.
“The Club offers an opportunity for faculty and
students to interact in a nontraditional way,” Gargano says. It
also offers members a gourmet dining experience, the ability to network,
admittance to high-profile special events, and access to other ClubCorps
properties around the globe.
More specifically, being a member has the benefit
of dinner theater packages offered in connection with Lisner Auditorium
for four shows this semester, with 10 percent off premium seats at the
auditorium. Last week, the first dinner theater package offered the
2nd Annual Flamenco Festival DC. There also is the Club’s Signature
Menu, offered daily, market fresh, and priced from $5 to $6.95; the
“59 Minute Lunch” guarantee; lunch by fax, minimizing waiting
time by allowing members to fax their lunch order into the Club ahead
of time; or the buffet offered every day for lunch. A new Colonial Shuttle
Service leaves from Funger and Rice halls every day between noon and
2:15 pm, dropping members off at the Club’s front door.
Back at Jazz Night, Holmes’ melancholy saxophone
leads the “Shapes” into a stirring rendition of Sinatra’s
“My Funny Valentine,” and soon the quartet has captured the
heart of the gathering crowd. It’s then that Crow breaks loose
on the drums like a teenager testing out his first set.
Similarly, many of the new projects at the Club are
being tested for the first time. But with 90 new members since September,
bringing the total membership to about 900, SASS and the Club management
may have found GW’s groove.
For more information about the University Club, call
Tim Ramsey, general manager, at 994-2355 or visit www.gwclub.com.
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
