Meet Jessica Cooper

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jessica Cooper. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jessica below.

Jessica, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I have found my purpose by following my heart and trying my best to spread the love that I have for performing live classical music to others. While I love attending traditional concerts in theater settings, I understand that this is not an activity that feels accessible to all; I am constantly looking for new ways of presenting classical music and venues that offer more intimate connections between the artists and the audience. In a world where so much tends to divide us, live music offers such solace and opportunity for connection among one another.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I am a classically trained violist and work as a freelance musician and teaching artist based in Boston, MA. I have the pleasure of getting to share my love for classical music by both teaching young musicians and by performing music with a variety of ensembles, including with my own organization, Spectacle Collective. I am the co-founder of Spectacle Collective, a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit that brings classical music and other art forms into conversation with each other to create multidisciplinary performances, engage wider audiences, and help artists thrive.

Spectacle Collective was founded in 2019 with our inaugural project, Dmitri in the Dark, where we combined a classical string quartet by Dmitri Shostakovich with the work of actors and acrobats, all performed live, onstage together. For this project I served as both a producer and performed on my viola.

Our most recent project in October 2024, Luz & Leyendas, featured both classical and Andean music performed live alongside a mystical shadow puppetry story of a girl and her struggles to find her way in the world. According to the Boston Musical Intelligencer, “The entirety of Luz & Leyendas is so enchanting that you will forget that it is a production. It is a delectable feast for world music aficionados.” I was both the lead producer and violist for this project. Next on the docket is bringing Luz & Leyendas on tour so we can continue to share it with more audiences!

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Three skills that have helped me to thrive:

-Staying creative and thinking outside of the box–drawing inspiration from both the traditional way of doing things and unexpected places to create something new is a great way to attract both collaborators and audiences to performances

-Perseverance–starting something from the ground up is hard, but if it’s something that is really meaningful and that you’re passionate about, then it’s worth it

-Asking for help–surrounding yourself with a team that you know has your back and seeking out advice from mentors and colleagues with different experiences and points of view makes all the difference

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

We are always looking for new collaborators and especially at this moment, new venues that would like to host one of our performances! If you would like to chat about a possible Spectacle Collective project at your space or with your organization, please feel free to get in touch with me at [email protected]. Or if you would just like to stay up to date on our latest projects, join our mailing list at spectaclecollective.org or follow us on social media @spectacle_collective.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

The first four photos (musicians in black clothing with shadow puppetry) are by Nohemi Rodriguez. The last two photos (musicians in white with circus artists) are by Janna Mach.

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