Arts organizations working with limited operating budgets need to be creative, and they're clamoring for recognition in a valley of established, big-budget groups already immersed in a saturated media environment.

"We realized there would be a larger audience if we worked together," says Emily Ray, former president of the coalition and conductor for the Mission Chamber Orchestra.

The newly founded coalition, representing dance, music, visual art, drama and the literary arts, is open to groups in Silicon Valley operating on a small annual budget—that means under $1 million. Membership requires a representative to attend monthly meetings and participate on committees to help in fundraising and marketing efforts.

The group is beginning to see the benefits of the cross-promotional support.

Ray says the group is receiving a lot of attention. A calendar that highlights two months of the groups' upcoming performances is available online. The calendars are also circulated at every member group's performances, creating a simple vehicle for cross-marketing all the organizations.

The increased exposure may result in increased ticket sales, which undoubtedly benefits the arts community, but there's possibly an unplanned bonus for the community at large. Additional exposure may help symphony enthusiasts learn about flamenco dance performances and art lovers may be exposed to Irish theater works that wouldn't normally be on their entertainment radar.

The coalition boasts a colorful collection of 24 arts organizations that reflect the diverse landscape of Silicon Valley. Relatively new theater groups like the Tabard Theatre in South San Jose, which is presenting works that encourage diversity and an understanding of Silicon Valley's multicultural community, to the Shady Shakespeare Theatre Company, which performs—no surprise—Shakespeare outdoors. The South Bay Guitar Society offers a wide range of guitar performances, such as Hawaiian slack guitar at the Coconut Grove Ballroom in Santa Cruz and Music of the Spheres at the Lick Observatory accompanied by an astronomy lecture. In another example of cross-promotion, the San Jose Art League is able to showcase art at various musical performances.

Music, theater and art aren't the only opportunities to catch smaller arts groups in the Bay Area. Poetry Center San Jose has teamed up with the San Jose Museum of Art and the Dr. Martin Luther King Main Library for a season of poetry readings. Poet and translator Emiko Miyashita will launch the center's fall lineup on Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. at the library, focusing on haiku in both Japanese and English. Miyashita, a dojin, or leading member of the Ten'i Haiku group in Tokyo, Japan, will read her translations of such haiku poets as Akito Arima, Masajo Suzuki and Yoshiko Yoshino.

Since 1978, the poetry center has supported local and international poets in San Jose. The center's audience is typically filled with its own members. If the concerted effort pays off, the added exposure from the coalition may make a difference in attendance during this fall's poetry readings.

Silicon Valley Arts Coalition will continue to work creatively on getting their organizations heard and seen this fall.

For more information about Silicon Valley Arts Coalition, or to look at the group's calendar, visit www.svarts.org. For Poetry Center San Jose's fall schedule, call 408.292.3254.