Inclusive Arts – Accessible Events For January & February 2016‏

Join us for EXPERIENCE ARTS & ACCESS

Tuesday, January 26, 2016
2:45 to 5:30pm
Banana Factory
25 West Third Street
Bethlehem, PA 18015


This mid-winter festive gathering celebrates the achievements of Arts & Access midway through a year of offering greater accessibility.

Arts & Access launched last July to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act through the lens of the arts. Currently, thirty arts organizations have teamed up with social service agencies to offer more than fifty events through June 2016, that intentionally reach people with disabilities and their family and friends. The diversity of programming include live theatre performances that are audio described and open captioned for people with visual and hearing loss; sensory friendly performances for children with autism, and a dance workshop for Parkinson patients and their caregivers.

“Cultural access is really about customer service,” says Randall Forte, Executive Director of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council. “It’s about making your customers feel welcome and comfortable.

Experience Arts & Access seeks to raise awareness of the needs as well as the abilities of persons with disabilities. Featured artist and National Storytelling Champion Anne Thomas will perform autobiographical stories crafted with a mix of dark humor, high energy and rare common sense. She speaks not only to survivors of disability, illness and tragedy, but to everyone who has a body, a dream, obstacles, hope and determination.

Experience will also allow visitors to explore an arts experience through the simulated reality of a person with a physical, sensory, or cognitive limitation. Guests will be encouraged to test the different technologies that are available, such as audio description and open captioning, voice activated wheel chairs, plus a tactile exploration of a 3-D image of a painting.

The event is FREE and open to the everyone, particularly someone with a disability. Please RSVP to attend at info@lvartscouncil.org or 610-437-5915. Light refreshments will be provided.

Our newest PROMOTIONAL VIDEO for Arts & Access

We’ve just released the second in our ongoing collection of Arts & Access promotional videos!

This edition gives a more intimate look at the Summer and Fall 2015 programming that supports our mission for inclusive arts in our region. The organizations involved have produced quite a variety of accessible arts experiences – theatre performances, visual arts classes and exhibitions, and dance workshops – all celebrating and representing a wide variety of disabilities.

Beautifully produced by Marco Calderon, our hearts are touched each time we see the laughing faces of the participants and encouraging words of those involved. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the celebration thus far! We are looking forward to the events planned for this year – we are only halfway through and we have already made such an impact.

View our newest video on YouTube

If you didn’t catch our last edition featuring the Launch Party in July 2015, here it is!

ARTICLE: See the Music, Hear the Art!

In October, SATORI played a classical music concert for an audience who couldn’t hear it – and it was wonderful.

SATORI is participating in the Arts & Access initiative of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council, a yearlong celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, seen through the lens of the arts. As a performing arts organization with deep roots locally, we wanted to be a part of this special series of events – and thought we already had an ace in the hole. For almost two decades, SATORI has been presenting in-school music education programs that combine classical music with an array of vibrant images and drawings, projected overhead as the musicians play. Surely the addition of a visual component to a music performance might make it more appropriate for a deaf or hard-of-hearing audience?
READ MORE on our blog

Come see SATORI Chamber Music Ensemble perform at our Experience Arts & Access Event on January 26th!

JANUARY 2016
ACCESSIBLE ART – PHASE II TACTILE DESCRIPTION
Now through June 1, 2017
Lehigh Main Gallery
Open during gallery hours
Presented by Lehigh University Art Galleries & Museum

Teaching Collection of multiple artists’ work in Audio Description and Tactile Description (3-D image to touch) for the visually impaired. Gallery Hours: Wed-Sat, 11am – 5pm; Sun, 1-5pm; Closed Mon-Tues.
Handicap Access • Blind & Low-Vision • Audio Description


ARTIST IN RECOVERY – MONTHLY ART EXHIBITIONS
January 8, 2016 & February 5, 2016
Recovery Partnership
1:00pm – 3:00pm
Featuring artists who express their journey with mental health. Held every first Friday. Free.
Handicap Access • Mental Health


“LIFE ACCESSIBLE” – PHOTOGRAPHY BEYOND THE LIMITS OF SIGHT
January 8, 2016 through February 22, 2016
Banana Factory
Open during gallery hours
Presented by ArtsQuest
Photographer Stephen Cunic’s 3-D images, created using various layers and texture, allow visually impaired patrons to experience his scenes using their sense of touch. Free and open to all. Gallery Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-9:30pm, Sat & Sun, 8:30am-5pm.
Handicap Access • Blind & Low-Vision


ICE CREAM WARS 8.0
January 9, 2016
Da Vinci Science Center
10:30am – 2:00pm
Presented by Da Vinci Science Center
Presenting teams from regional and global companies in a playful competition to create fresh batches of creative ice cream flavors. Sign Language interpreter for each presentation.
Handicap Access • American Sign Language


FREE PARKINSON’S DISEASE WELLNESS FAIR
January 11, 2016
Good Shepherd Health & Technology Center
10:00am – 1:00pm
Presented by Good Shepherd Rehabilitation
For those with Parkinson’s and their families / caregivers. Demonstrations, education, health screenings. Registration recommended: 610-776-3393.
Handicap Access • Cognitive Health


DANCE FOR PD – TWO-DAY PROFESSIONAL WORKSHOP
January 23 & 24, 2016
Zoellner Arts Center
10:00am – 1:00pm
Presented by Lehigh Valley Dance Exchange / Mark Morris Dance Group
Intro to the internationally-acclaimed Dance for PD (Parkinson’s Disease) program. $100 tuition for two-day workshop, reservations required: pittsburghdancepress@gmail.com.
Handicap Access • Cognitive Health
*FREE MOVEMENT CLASS ON JANUARY 23 FROM 2:00-3:30 PM – Appropriate for anyone with PD.


PUPPET-MAKING CLASS
January 23, 2016
IceHouse Center
11:00am – 1:00pm
Presented by Mock Turtle Marionette / Easter Seals
This hands-on session will consist of puppet-making, learning a set of jokes and songs, and a twenty-minute performance. Free and open to public.
Handicap Access • Cognitive Health

FEBRUARY 2016
PUCCINI ARIAS
February 13, 2016 – 7:30pm / February 14, 2016 – 3:00pm
Miller Symphony Hall
Presented by Allentown Symphony Orchestra
Puccini’s Greatest Hits performed by Allentown Symphony Orchestra. Projected subtitles.
Handicap Access • Deaf & Hard of Hearing • Open Captioning


FAMILY CONCERT – HEART AND SOUL: VOICES OF THE FUTURE
February 28, 2016
Zoellner Arts Center
3:00pm

Presented by The Bach Choir of Bethlehem / Mercy Learning Center
Four fabulous youth choirs join The Bach Choir and Bach Festival Orchestra in a program of favorite choruses by Bach, Handel, and Randall Thompson. General Admission: $18, Students $7.
Handicap Access • Cognitive Health

The Bach Choir Of Bethlehem Presents: Young Meister Bach

ImageProxy (1)Young Meister Bach, the delightful one-act comic opera by Chuck Holdeman and Bill Bly, which premiered at our Family Concert, is perfectly paired with J.S. Bach’s popular Coffee Cantata. Young Meister Bach is a lively, imaginative look at the misadventures of a young J S Bach as he embarks on his career at age 18. The Coffee Cantata, although classified as a cantata, it is essentially a miniature comic opera. In a satirical commentary, the cantata amusingly tells of an addiction to coffee, a pressing social problem in eighteenth century Leipzig, where this work was premiered. Both pieces are sung in English.

The Concert begins at 10:30 am in Baker Hall at the Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem. Take your Ticket Confirmation to the Zoellner Arts Center Box Office, purchase your RUSH TICKET Today for Young Meister Bach with Coffee Cantata on May 10th for ONLY $9.99 (Normally $28)!!!


An Introduction to Young Meister Bach (YouTube Video):www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQAW4xoPQuI


For more information on the Bach Choir of Bethlehem:
www.bach.org – 610-866-4382 – office@bach.org 

Click Here to Buy
Last Minute Discount
RUSH Tickets
for Young Meister Bach with Coffee Cantata
on May 10th –
ONLY
 $9.99!

(NORMALLY $28!)

LVAC-4Lines

‘Master Choreographers’ Dance Concert, Feb. 10-12, Displays Talents Of Acclaimed Choreographers, 40+ Dancers

Allentown, Pa. (Jan. 18, 2011) — Muhlenberg College will showcase world premiere dance works created by seven of the region’s most accomplished choreographers, in the College’s annual “Master Choreographers” dance concert, Feb. 10-12.

Featuring a diverse selection of styles and genres, ranging from classical ballet to jazz, tap, and modern dance, “Master Choreographers” also will showcase performances by more than 40 Muhlenberg dancers. The performance will take place on the Empie Theatre stage, in Muhlenberg’s Baker Center for the Arts.

“This concert is a spectacular evening of ballet, tap, jazz, and contemporary dance,” says Karen Dearborn, the director of dance for Muhlenberg’s Department of Theatre & Dance, and the artistic director for “Master Choreographers.” “We are fortunate to be showcasing new works by internationally acclaimed guest artists and faculty.”

This season’s “Master Choreographers” concert will feature works by: Charles O. Anderson, artistic director of the Philadelphia-based dance theatre X; Corrie Franz Cowart, co-artistic director of Co-Art Dance; Heidi Cruz-Austin, alumna of the Pennsylvania Ballet; Nicholas Leichter, director of Nicholas Leichter Dance; Shelley Oliver, director of Shelley Oliver Tap Dancers; Trinette Singleton, protege of ballet icon Robert Joffrey; and New York-based multidisciplinary performance artist Nicole Wolcott.

[Full biographies of the choreographers follow.]

“I’m so lucky to have the opportunity to work with such a talented group of professionals,” says Kelsey Griffith, a senior at Muhlenberg, who will perform in the concert, as well as serving as its production manager. “Working so closely with faculty and guest artists, we get to experience a deeply creative, artistically intense studio process. I’ve learned an incredible amount about the creative process of these choreographers.”

Performances of “Master Choreographers” will take place Feb. 10-12: Thursday, Feb. 10, at 8 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 11, at 8 p.m.; and Saturday, Feb. 12, at 2 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for patrons 17 and under. Performances are in the Empie Theatre, in the Baker Center for the Arts, Muhlenberg College, 2400 Chew St., Allentown. Information and tickets are available at 484-664-3333 or muhlenberg.edu/dance.

Charles O. Anderson is artistic director of the Philadelphia-based dance company dance theatre X. Both as a solo artist and with dance theatre X, Anderson has presented his work nationally and internationally. His choreographic research has led to collaborations with international choreographers working in fusions of traditional dance forms and contemporary movement styles. In the fall of 2010, Anderson premiered his new evening-length work “World Headquarters,” inspired by the writings of late science fiction writer Octavia Butler. Recipient of numerous grants and awards, Anderson was most recently selected as one of 12 “Emerging Scholars” for 2011, by Diverse magazine. He is an associate professor of dance at Muhlenberg College and the director of the African American studies program.

Heidi Cruz-Austin is an alumna of the Pennsylvania Ballet, and she has danced featured roles in works by choreographers ranging from Alvin Ailey to George Balanchine. In addition to dancing with Pennsylvania Ballet, Cruz-Austin has performed with the Philadelphia-based company Ballet X and as a guest artist throughout the United States and Europe. As a choreographer, Cruz-Austin was a winner for the 2003 Ballet Builders showcase in New York City. She has been commissioned to create works for Franklin and Marshall College, Bryn Mawr College, Repertory Dance Theater, and Ballet D’errico, and she was a recipient of the 2004-2005 New Edge Residency at The Community Education Center of Philadelphia.

Corrie Franz Cowart has performed with the Mary Miller Dance Company, LABCO Dance, Minh Tran and Company, the Dance Theatre of Oregon, and the Pittsburgh Opera. She is also the co-artistic director of Co-Art Dance and has performed both nationally and internationally with Impact Productions’ “Dayuma,” and “The Masterpiece.” Cowart continues to perform and choreograph for her own company Co-Art Dance, a contemporary dance company she co-founded in 1997 with her husband Tim Cowart. Corrie is an assistant professor at Muhlenberg College, where she teaches modern, dance composition, and dance on camera.

Nicholas Leichter is the director of Nicholas Leichter Dance, for which he has created more than 25 works. He was a member of Ralph Lemon Company from 1993 to 1995, and has performed with the companies of Jennifer Muller, Ronald K. Brown, and others. Leichter has taught throughout the United States, at festivals in Eastern and Western Europe, Asia, and Canada. He has been on faculty at Tisch School of the Arts and the American Dance Festival in Durham, New York, Russia, Korea, and most recently, Shanghai. Leichter and his company presented “The Whiz,” a reimagining of Broadway’s “The Wiz,” at the Zoellner Arts Center in January in conjunction with the Muhlenberg Dancers.

Shelley Oliver has more than 20 years experience as a professional tap dancer. She is a founding member of the noted dance ensemble “Manhattan Tap,” and she has toured extensively throughout Europe, China, the Caribbean, Canada and the United States, performing with such tap notables as Savion Glover, Jimmy Slide, Buster Brown and Chuck Green. She has conducted lecture demonstrations for Lincoln Center, New York City public schools, and universities throughout the United States. She teaches a comprehensive jazz tap program at Muhlenberg College and directs the Muhlenberg Jazztap Ensemble, providing community outreach programs in the Allentown area. Oliver’s piece will feature live musical accompaniment by the David Leonhardt Jazz Group.

Trinette Singleton is a protege of ballet icon Robert Joffrey and was on faculty at The Joffrey Ballet School in New York City, teaching until 2004. Singleton has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe in ballets by such notable choreographers as Joffrey, George Balanchine, John Cranko, Kurt Jooss, and Twyla Tharp. She was the first dancer to ever appear on the cover of a national news magazine — Time, in 1968. Currently, Singleton is co-artistic director of Repertory Dance Theatre in Allentown, and is on the faculty at DeSales University. Her original work “Capriccios” garnered the Outstanding Choreographer award at the semifinals of the Youth America Grand Prix, spring 2010.

Nicole Wolcott is a choreographer, teacher, and performance artist based in New York City. In 2003 Wolcott co-founded Keigwin + Company with Larry Keigwin and was the associate artistic director until 2010. Nicole has performed at the Metropolitan Opera House under the direction of Julie Taymor and Mark Dendy, worked with site-specific choreographer Noemie Lafrance, was a featured dancer in Doug Elkin’s original “Fraulein Maria,” appeared in music videos and concerts with Fischerspooner; and is a featured dancer in “Across the Universe,” an Oscar-nominated film by director Julie Taymor.

Artistic director Karen Dearborn has choreographed more than 70 works in concert, theater, and musical theater, including national tours of the Tony Award-winning National Theatre of the Deaf and several Equity theatres. She has provided choreography for the Muhlenberg theater productions of “Oklahoma!” “Urinetown,” and “West Side Story,” and Muhlenberg Summer Music Theatre productions of “The Sound of Music,” “The Who’s Tommy,” and “Oliver!” to name just a few. Dearborn is the founding director of Muhlenberg’s dance program. Her scholarly research has been published in the Journal of Dance Education, and she contributed an essay to the book “Performing Magic on the Western Stage.” She serves on the executive board of the American College Dance Festival Association.

Muhlenberg College is a liberal arts college of about 2,200 students in Allentown, Pa. The College offers Bachelor of Arts degrees in theater and dance. The Fiske Guide to Colleges lists both the theater and dance programs among the top small college programs in the United States. Muhlenberg is one of only eight colleges to be listed in Fiske for both theater and dance.