National Core Arts Standards

October 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment

 

The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards (NCCAS) will be joined by singer-songwriter and arts education activist, Ben Folds to host a formal launch of the new National Core Arts Standards 9:00 a.m. on Monday, October 20, at the Microsoft New York Metro District Offices in Times Square. The one-hour event will feature remarks by Robert L. Lynch, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts and David A. Dik, NCCAS leadership member and National Executive Director of Young Audiences Arts for Learning, and be live streamed via Google Hangout on this webpage. The Core Arts Standards were created by the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards (NCCAS), a partnership of ten national arts and education service organizations. – See more at: http://www.nationalartsstandards.org/content/launch#sthash.9tgUzL3T.dpuf

 

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Featured News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Ten Things I’ve Learned from Poetry

October 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Jonathan Katz. Photo courtesy of NASAA

Jonathan Katz. Photo courtesy of NASAA

October 7, 2014By Jonathan Katz, CEO, National Assembly of State Arts Agencies

 

As a young faculty member in the English department of Wichita State University, I worked occasionally as a poet-in-the-schools for the Kansas Arts Commission. For this program (funded in part by the NEA, I am proud to say), I traveled to small communities and met with teachers, administrators, students, and community groups to share poetry and promote its ongoing teaching as a valued part of the curriculum.

 

 

Like many creative writing teachers, I was influenced by Kenneth Koch’s ground-breaking book, Wishes, Lies and Dreams, and so I was profoundly affected, in one little town, to recognize that what my students presented as their dreams were, in fact, the cartoons I had seen the previous Sunday morning in my motel room. I changed my methods, began to incorporate a lot of imaginative exercises demanding interplay between images and language, and have never stopped thinking about how our American life will be diminished if we don’t succeed in keeping every child’s full range of senses open, fresh, capable of observing and criticizing the enveloping world, and of developing its individual identity. This is why I was pleased to see state arts agencies share the vision of the NEA and the Poetry Foundation to create the Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest and why I am not surprised to have seen participation grow rapidly to more than 365,000 students annually. – See more …

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Featured News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Testimonial #42: David Morehead, Executive Director, Calling From The Dream

October 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment

“I did not have a teacher that influenced me to actually pursue the arts. My decision to do so was pretty much pre-determined genetically at an early age. Music, acting, and the arts were a major part of my life growing up. Unfortunately though, the school system I attended, though not devoid of support for the arts, the focus and dollars were geared toward athletic programs and most specifically football.”

How has your life been indelibly touched by a teacher who utilized the arts for whatever reason and acknowledge how they were instrumental in breaking the mold to allow you to become who you are today?

My life was indelibly touched by an art teacher as a sophomore in high school. His name is Robert K. Haselier and it is a rather long and amusing story of where we started almost 45 years ago to where we are today as friends. I believe we both started at the high school I attended the same time; he, as a teacher and I as a student. If he did not leave the year I did after graduating, then he left the following year. My first encounter with him was when I entered his classroom for a drawing class. We had an assignment that required the use of scissors of which I did not have. I approached his desk and asked the question,” Where are the scissors at ?” ….This opened a lecture of how one does not use “at” at the end a sentence or end it with any preposition, blah,blah,blah….. Me being a 15 year old kid with attitude, I suppose it is easy to imagine my restrained thought of commenting “Kiss my …” followed with several choice expletives ending with my desire for him to return his to New Jersey. Fortunately, I did not. I had him for several classes the next 3 years all focusing on the arts, be it fine arts, foreign languages, humanities, etc. Eventually, we grew a tolerance [for each other] which developed into an acceptance, and avoided any confrontational situations. Towards the end of my senior year, he overheard a conversation I was having with a classmate about a stage production of “Tommy” that I had seen the night before. Long story short, he told me that he could allow extra credit points with a ticket stub and a written review if I wanted to submit. I found out that would have also been permitted for any class that I had taken from him e.g. a trip to an art museum for an art class, a concert for music appreciation, etc. With my backyard and stomping grounds being Sarasota , St. Petersburg, Tampa to Orlando and Daytona Beach and my love for the performing arts, had I known….I would have skipped classes a lot more than I did and actually came out ahead rather than being penalized. After I graduated from high school, we crossed paths a couple years later when he and his band mates came into a night club I was working, which featured live rock bands. We reconnected and saw each other frequently the next few years until I finally moved to the west coast. We did not see each other for a number of years. We did however touch base every few years, and then with the advent of Facebook and other social media avenues, are up to par again. Though we may not communicate daily, I do feel confident that he also feels that mutually reaching out to each other would bring a welcoming reception.
How are the arts re-igniting your community and sparking innovation and creativity in your local schools?

I am sure this is not quite the response you were anticipating as I did not have a teacher that influenced me to actually pursue the arts. My decision to do so was pretty much pre-determined genetically at an early age. Music, acting, and the arts were a major part of my life growing up. Unfortunately though, the school system I attended, though not devoid of support for the arts, the focus and dollars were geared toward athletic programs and most specifically football. One does not miss what is not available and besides this was something to have fun with, but not to be a chosen profession desired by my parents for me. When I was 16, I attended a Moody Blues concert with a friend and made the prophetic announcement that this was what I wanted to do with my life. Four years later, I was in a nightclub conversing with a keyboardist while he was on break and discovered that he, too, had a similar epiphany. Before he went back on stage, we had a laugh and decided we knew what we wanted; now, we had to just figure out how to make money doing so. Here I am today still trying to find the answer. If and when I do, my legacy will be to create a scholarship for students pursuing a career in performing arts. If it’s really successful, I will build a K-12 performing arts academy inclusive of a medium size theatre for the students’ performances. Hopefully, when she does appear at the end of my life, the fat lady who sings, will be a graduate of the academy and a recipient of a scholarship!

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Testimonials Tagged With: , , , ,

WOMEN IN THE ARTS & MEDIA COALITION ANNOUNCES VintAGE

October 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment

WOMEN IN THE ARTS AND MEDIA COALITION vector fileThe Women in the Arts & Media Coalition is producing VintAge, one of its two Signature Events, supporting the voice and vision of women in the arts & media as they age, on Saturday, October 18, from 1-5:30 p.m. at MIST Harlem.

 

The 1st Elsa Rael VintAge Award Winner for advocacy for women in the arts & media as they age will be presented to Morgan Jenness, dramaturg & agent, for spearheading the cause célèbre that has protected Maria Irene Fornes and her playwriting work in her elder years. The award will be presented by Tisa Chang, artistic director of Pan Asian Rep. There will also be pre-taped personal statements made about Elsa Rael and the importance of celebrating women in the arts and media as they age by Estelle Parsons and Gretchen Cryer.

 

It will be an afternoon both entertaining and illuminating, beginning with the new documentary ADVANCED STYLE by Lina Plyoplyte, the story behind the fashion blog which became an international phenomenon (70 minutes); and JUST THE THREE OF US, a short film by Angela Tucker starring Leslie Uggams (15 minutes).

 

Following will be a panel on breakthroughs and issues of women aging in the arts and media moderated by Isa Goldberg, President of the Drama Desk; panelists include Barbara Davis, COO of the Actors Fund, Liz Rosenberg, poet/novelist; Yvonne Curry, choreographer/director, and more.

 

The award presentation will then be followed by a reception and networking. Hosts for the day will be Co-Presidents of the Coalition, Shellen Lubin and Avis Boone.  Read more…

Hillary Rodham Clinton, then a U.S. Senator from New York, wrote for that first program: “My hope for every woman in the 21st Century is that she will be blessed with choice and empowered with the tools of opportunity to make the most of her God-given talents. She will be free to pursue her own vision in the world of work, in the public sphere, in the political process and to build loving and strong families at home. Her voice will be heard; her concerns will be followed.”

 

Celebrants at past VintAge events have included Lainie Kazan, Phyllis Newman, Tina Howe, Marian Seldes, Lynn Ahrens, Anita Gillette, and Lesley Gore.

 

VintAge is co-sponsored by NYWIFT (New York Women in Film and Television), SAG-AFTRA, the Dramatists Guild, and the League of Professional Theatre Women. All four of these organizations are members of the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition.

 

Women in the Arts & Media Coalition, Inc. is a non-profit organization, which represents more than 80,000 women and men in the performing arts and media through its member organizations and affiliates. The Coalition focuses the power of its member organizations and their memberships together and uses the combined strength to address issues of concern through advocacy, networking, and educational events. Member organizations are: Actors’ Equity Association, Dramatists Guild of America, League of Professional Theatre Women, SAG-AFTRA New York Local, Stage Directors and Choreographers, New York Women in Film & Television, and the Writers Guild of America, East. Affiliate organizations are: WomenArts, Women’s Media Center, Women Make Movies, Works by Women, Drama Desk, Dancers Over 40, The Lambs, Inc., The Rehearsal Club, and Professional Women Singers Association. For more information on the Coalition, visit www.womenartsmediacoalition.org.

 

MIST Harlem is located at 46 West 116th Street, in the heart of central Harlem, steps from the IRT #2 and #3 train.  MIST Harlem is guided by the essential philosophy of using select environmentally sustainable materials which minimize consumption of resources, improve air quality, reduce energy consumption, preserve resources for future generations while providing an inviting and compelling, contemporary space. Largely hired from the Harlem community and beyond, staff is cross-trained in hospitality, efficient operations, marketing and promotions and technical production services to develop a team that excels in customer service, cultural resonance and community engagement. MIST offers a unique, dining and entertainment experience in an environmentally responsible, inviting and compelling, contemporary setting.

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Featured News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Testimonial #41: Joseph Crawford, Creative Producer/Artist

October 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment

“The reality of the Arts as an industry is that you will be made to work hard, adapt to foreign situations, work for free (for a bit), and take your fair share of rejections… but it’s worth every minute when you see YOUR idea turn into a reality. “

How has your life been indelibly touched by a teacher who utilized the arts for whatever reason and acknowledge how they were instrumental in breaking the mold to allow you to become who you are today?

Mark, my English Literature teacher at Birkenhead Sixth Form College, taught me more than just an appreciation of history’s greatest written works – he also taught me that creativity is a choice, and it needs tending to if it is to blossom. Mark was a spell-binding individual; pony-tailed, long-bearded, and walked with the aid of his tree-branch staff (taken from the tree Wordsworth liked to sit under) – the definition of a romanticist. He would finish lessons 30 minutes before their time, and invite us to spend the rest of the time writing poetry. It was my own choice, and pleasure, to stay behind constructing sonnets while most of the classroom left. Through Mark’s lessons, I realized that I was not going to follow the same path as the majority. Nowadays I am surrounded by inspirational figures; Charlotte Corrie/Christina Grogan – Open Culture, Chris/Kaya Carney – Threshold, Alex McCorkindale, Director of Flux Liverpool (to name just a few) – Liverpool’s cultural icons who invest their time and energy into making the Arts a sustainable industry, and to inspire the next generation of Creatives. If I have a creative idea, I know where to begin in order to set the wheels in motion – never forgetting the realities, the costs, and the rewards of this harmonious community. Without mentors, young people in the arts will simply make the same mistakes as their predecessors, and in an increasingly difficult economic environment, we need all the help we can get. Cultural education starts in the Arts, and leads to bigger things than you can imagine.

How are the arts re-igniting your community and sparking innovation and creativity in your local schools?

 Since recognizing that the Arts is a nurturing community, I have encountered a body of wonderful people, discovered mind-blowing talent, and found true purpose. At the start of my third year of university after wading miserably through another “student-night” in a cesspool of night-clubs, I cried out ‘There has to be more than this!’ Two terms later I dusted off my guitar and began practicing again, eventually performing in the SU bar. By the end the following year, Lancaster had shown me a whole family of musicians, artists, actors, (and bar-staff) who genuinely cared about each other, and who helped me forge the tools for a career in the arts. Thanks to their tuition and support, I now perform across Merseyside – expressing my irrepressible creativity, and even getting paid for it. Now in Liverpool, I’ve found the same formula applies – a new family of supportive people who simply love to create. And it’s nowhere near as breezy, pie-in-the-sky as some people told me – it’s a commercially viable industry: the difference is that you are never left to fend for yourself! I have since learned the value of communications, marketing & PR, recognizing what a real team looks like, relationship-building, and so many more transferable skills! Like any industry though, there still exist odd barriers. Young people in the arts tend to be viewed as expendable commodities – an ornament used only for image, and rubber stamping ‘young’ ideas. Again, it all depends on who you’re working with; but the reality of the Arts as an industry is that you will be made to work hard, adapt to foreign situations, work for free (for a bit), and take your fair share of rejections… but it’s worth every minute when you see YOUR idea turn into a reality. Keep the Arts in schools – the future of the next generation of Creatives depends on it!

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Testimonials Tagged With: , , , , , ,