This issue marks the beginning of the second year of New Jersey Stage magazine. It all started with the first cover you see at the bottom of this page featuring a cover story on New Jersey musician Jack Skuller. Since that issue, we have featured numerous local and national artists in music, film, theatre, dance, comedy, and art.
New Jersey Stage was based upon a print publication I started a decade ago called Upstage Magazine. This publication is different for two very big reasons: one being that there is no print version of New Jersey Stage. The publication is completely designed to be read online, whether on a computer, tablet, or a smart phone. The other way it differs is because the digital format allows us to make our pages come alive. Instead of simply writing about a musician, we let you hear the music; we can show clips and video trailers of films; and our stories can link directly to external websites. We believe the digital medium allows us to present the story behind the story — something that makes our publication unique.
As someone with a long history as a music journalist, I cannot even imagine writing about music these days without offering people the opportunity to hear the songs. When this publication was launched, many people had never seen a digital magazine before. The format is still very new, but we think it makes complete sense for the arts. The inclusion of audio, video, and slideshows allow us to shine the spotlight on arts and entertainment in ways that nobody else can. The digital format also allows us to offer advertising at rates designed for the arts — rates much lower than we would be able to offer with a print publication.
Of course, this magazine is only part of what we do. We also have a website that covers arts and entertainment on a daily basis at www.NewJerseyStage.com. The stories in this magazine represent only a fraction of the editorial found on our website each week. In fact, we generally add between 60-75 articles a week. With so much information available, we are launching a pair of newsletters (daily and weekly) to showcase the news and features on the site. The newsletters should be available in early August. They will be available on the website and can be delivered to your email as well.
We would like to thank the advertisers and writers who have helped make our first year a success, we couldn’t have done it without you. And we would especially like to thank all of the readers who have joined us on this ride into a new era of publishing. If you aren’t a subscriber, please consider subscribing so you will be notified as soon as a new issue is available. Subscriptions are always free. We hope you enjoy each issue and share the magazine and articles with your friends.
-Gary Wien
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