BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Long before the first song plays or the first beer is poured, the work begins.

At ArtsQuest, the nonprofit behind Bethlehem’s biggest events — from Musikfest and Oktoberfest to year-round concerts and film screenings — what the public sees is only the final act of a process that stretches back months, sometimes even years.

“We’re already deep in planning for next summer’s World Cup celebration,” said Patrick Brogan, ArtsQuest’s chief programming officer and manager of the SteelStacks campus. “It’s October now, and we’ve already had three meetings this week about it.”

Brogan, who’s been with the organization for 25 years, oversees teams responsible for music, cinema, comedy and festivals — essentially everything that happens in front of an audience. The work behind those moments, he said, is anything but solitary.

“It really is a team effort,” he said. “No one person is making a decision in a vacuum. We have volunteers, board members, community partners — so many voices come together to decide what we do. The more partnerships we have, the more successful the event usually is.”

A year-round operation

The sheer scale of ArtsQuest’s event calendar is large. Weekends are booked solid through 2026 and most of 2027.

Famous artists like Jerry Seinfeld, Snoop Dogg and Sabrina Carpenter have performed on the Musikfest stage, but those moments are the result of months of negotiations and logistics. Offers for next year’s headliners, Brogan said, went out in May — before Musikfest 2025 even began.

Smaller events — like the annual Taco Fest or new concert series in Allentown’s Union Terrace Park — go through an intricate planning process that balances community demand, partnerships and funding availability.

“Sometimes a partner will come to us with a great idea,” Brogan said. “It might sit on the shelf for a year or two until we have the right funding or calendar slot. We’d love to do everything, but timing is everything.”

The people behind the magic

Behind every ArtsQuest event is a small army of staff and volunteers — from sound engineers and production crews to parking attendants, bartenders and crowd coordinators. ArtsQuest employs more than 100 people and relies on anywhere from a handful to more than 1,000 volunteers, depending on the event’s size.

“We’re in the experience business, and you can’t create experiences without people,” Brogan said. “We simply could not do what we do without our very talented team and the generous volunteers who give so freely of themselves.”

Many of those volunteers give up nights and weekends to help make the magic happen.

“Think about it,” Brogan said. “When most people are out enjoying the event, our staff and volunteers are working. Last night we had a concert with 12 volunteers giving up their Sunday evening. Other people were home watching football or relaxing, and here they were helping create something special for the community.”

Cory Stevens, the volunteer program manager, said those efforts are what give ArtsQuest its unique energy.

“There’s this sense of pride that comes from seeing the city come alive,” Stevens said. “Our volunteers love being part of that.”

A labor of love

Brogan admits the work can be unpredictable, and no live event goes off without a few surprises. But he said he believes that’s part of what makes it meaningful.

“It requires a lot of flexibility and patience,” he said. “When you go to an event, bring that patience with you. There’s so much work that goes into making these moments happen, and they’re fleeting — you can’t recreate them another day. That’s what makes them special.”

After two decades of helping shape the region’s cultural heartbeat, Brogan has seen countless moments that remind him why the work matters.

“How do you pick a favorite star in the sky?” he said with a laugh. “Seeing Jerry Seinfeld on our main stage, or a young Sabrina Carpenter before she became a global star — those moments are electric. But it’s also the smaller ones — when you see people dancing, smiling, feeling connected. That’s why we do it.”