Georgia Tech students in the English Composition class taught by Phil Auslander, a Professor in the School of Literature, Communication, and Culture, spent a day with Bon Jovi's technical crew as they prepared for the veteran rock act's concert on May 14th at Phillips Arena.  

Auslander's students were invited to participate in the Bon Jovi Student Experience (BJSE) which is reaching out to selected universities on tour stops. The students spent the day with Bon Jovi's technical crew as they prepared for the concert on May 14th. Student Emily Bibek told TV's 11Alive which covered the BJSE, "We got to see it from the beginning where there's absolutely nothing in the arena, to where everything's built up, to where they're going to perform."

Bon Jovi, named by Billboard as the #1 worldwide touring act of 2010, performs with an elaborate stage show that requires a day of feverish technical preparations.  The students toured the backstage area, met and interviewed crew members, learned about ticketing and management tactics and the sound board and the video equipment, geared toward understanding how a production of such magnitude can be mounted in less than 12 hours. 

The Bon Jovi Student Experience was just one part of Professor Auslander's focus on show business for his class. "Because [the BJSE] focuses on showing the students many of the technical procedures and much of the high-tech equipment Bon Jovi uses in concert, it should also provide Tech students with a good look at a particular realm that is relevant, in one way or another, to a vast array of our majors," said Auslander.