• Uncategorized

    I’m on the Imagining America website!

    OK, tooting my own horn, :). Our Access project was highlighted on the Imagining America site because I had the honor to attend the Arts Think Tank on behalf of our project directors! I was at the Next Step in Arts Think Tank:  Using the Arts and Humanities in Community Health, March 17-19, 2011, a regional Imagining America conference, organized with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Center on Age & Community, directed by Dr. Anne Basting. The theme was on the intersection of culture and health. Read more. On that page,…

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    Next Steps in Arts Think Tank Part 2: Finding Penelope

    The Play. I’ve been postponing this organization of my thoughts and my mixed (in a good way!) response to it. It is a beautifully crafted, complex and tender piece of art. I am half afraid to write about it. But “[f]inding Penelope” (FP) was one of the main reasons for my trip. So I want to document this learning experience. I had been following The Penelope Project blog for a while after Marj told me about it when she came back from the Seattle IA Conference. It inspired us, me,…

  • Art(s)

    A Community-Based Theatre Experience

    Cry for Peace: Voices from the Congo. Storch Theatre, Syracuse Stage (SS). Last night, I was fortunate to be invited by one of my committee members to watch the poignant documentary-theater, public workshop performance, community-based play (?) about the Congolese refugees now located in Syracuse. It was co-written by Ping Chong and SS dramaturg, Kyle Bass. True, I have used multiple labels in an effort to describe what it is. Still, they are inadequate at conveying what I perceived. Methinks it is a bit of CBP (Jan Cohen-Cruz’s model), with…

  • Art(s)

    Expert Advice on Community-Based Arts

    I’m having a lot of fun right now learning and conceptualizing my yes, new study! I’ve attended a talk on art-based research (See Nov 30 posting). Today, I had the honor to talk to Dr. Jan Cohen-Cruz, Director, Imagining America, author and expert on community-based performance (CBP). That is, on an unforgettable day of rain and snow, making the walk to Tolley Building a wet and slushy one. Nevertheless, still memorable.:) Marj had recommended I read her book(s). I’ve started with Local Acts. It documents the historical origins, establishes the…