ANIMATING DEMOCRACY E-NEWS
July 2006
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Animating Democracy News and Updates |
Animating Democracy announces search for fall internwww.AmericansForTheArts.org/AnimatingDemocracy
Animating Democracy is seeking an undergraduate or graduate student for a fall 2006 internship. Primary responsibilities include research and content development for the National Arts Policy Database and Animating Democracy website, including profiles of arts- and humanities-based civic dialogue and engagement projects. In addition, the intern will provide research, communications, and marketing support and assist Animating Democracy staff with various projects to support the program’s goals. Candidates must have strong writing and research skills and be familiar with Microsoft Office products, including Word and Excel. A student with interest in community arts and/or arts-based civic engagement is preferred.
Application deadline is August 18, 2006. For more information on this or other internship opportunities at Americans for the Arts, visit the Americans for the Arts internship page.
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News from the Field |
Cornerstone Institute develops Lethewww.cornerstonetheater.org/what_mainpage.html#lethe
This August, the Cornerstone Institute—a multidisciplinary professional training program in community-based theater that teaches Cornerstone Theater Company’s collaborative methodology—will present Lethe, in partnership with the University of San Francisco Performing Arts & Social Justice program. Lethe will be a play that explores the stories of caregivers and older adults as they struggle with new beginnings, recent loss, and the mystery of memory. Earlier in the institute, Cornerstone artists met with individuals at St. Anne's Home for the Elderly Little Sisters of the Poor, the Institute on Aging's Ruth Ann Rosenberg, Adult Day Health Center, Hospice by the Bay, and other organizations to learn more about the community and develop this original play inspired by their stories.
Amos Latteier launches karaoke-style phone protestwww.werenotgonnatakeit.org
www.latteier.com
Amos Latteier, an artist based in Portland, OR, has launched a new project, We’re Not Gonna Take It, giving unique voice to Toronto citizens’ concerns. Participants phone into an automated phone service and are asked to record their name and a song dedication. Then, singing along with the chorus, participants create original verses to the tune of Twisted Sister’s We’re Not Gonna Take It to convey their feelings on a specific issue (such as corporate globalism, a landlord’s poor repair record, or the size of the bike lanes on local roads). The complete song is then sent to a Toronto-based politician of the participant’s choosing, and posted on the project website.
Mayfair Improvement Initiative announces search for Community Engagement and Civic Action Promoterwww.mayfairneighborhood.org
The Mayfair Initiative—a citizen-led initiative that focuses on educational and quality of life foundations for all community members in the Mayfair neighborhood of East San José, CA—is seeking a promoter to direct its Community Engagement and Civic Action departments. The promoter works directly with community members in order to build their participation and leadership in social analysis. Using popular theater methodologies such as Theater of the Oppressed, Chicano Actos, and Puppet and Shadow Theater, the promoter will lead a three-year education campaign on early childhood education and family health. Other themes and popular theater formats will be explored through the formation of a community-led, popular theater ensemble that will engage in direct collective political action—including the Mobilize the Immigrant Vote campaign and advocacy for immigrants’ rights, fair housing for working poor families, and expanded adult education and employment opportunities.
The qualified candidate must have a minimum of two years' work experience in at least two of the following areas: popular education, popular theater, or community organizing. In addition, candidates must have experience working with innovative, culture-based strategies; be bilingual/biliterate in Spanish-English; and possess a valid California driver’s license and proof of auto insurance. To apply, contact Selma Murillo at 408.251.6900 or smurillo@mayfairneighborhood.org.
Headlines Theater announces METH workshop opportunitywww.headlinestheatre.com/Meth/index.htm
Headlines Theater—a British Columbia-based community arts organization—is looking for participants for a week-long Theatre for Living workshop. The workshop will lead to the creation of METH, a community-based interactive Forum Theatre production exploring the human factors and root causes that lead to addiction. During the first week in November, community members with firsthand experience of meth addiction struggles (either personally or through a relationship with a loved one) will meet to create a grassroots project to enable community dialogue. In the weeks following the workshop, five members—along with a professional design team—will create the main-stage Forum Theatre play, which will tour 30 sites in British Columbia in 2007. For details on how to become a workshop participant, visit the Headlines Theater website.
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Articles and Publications |
Exit Art announces call for submissions for Zorroswww.exitart.org/emailers/emailer_zorros.html
Exit Art—a New York-based gallery space that “seeks to present the work of emerging artists in innovative ways to expose the diverse, multidisciplinary nature of contemporary culture”—recently introduced a new print and online platform for cultural criticism. Zorros invites writers and cultural thinkers to discuss approaches to historical reality, current cultural mechanisms, and the quest for new tendencies in creativity. For the first issue, Exit Art is inviting analysis, critique, prose, or poetry related to the ideas presented in its exhibition, Wild Girls. The exhibition features 30 women artists who are expanding the language and practice of feminism. To be included in the issue, send 250 words by August 15, 2005, to zorros@exitart.org.
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Events on the Horizon |
Sojourn Theatre's Devising Performance/Facilitating Dialogue
Dates: July 24–29, 2006
Portland, ORwww.sojourntheatre.org
Now in its seventh summer, this national five-and-a-half-day workshop/training session offers participants from around the nation an opportunity to explore the techniques and strategies Sojourn Theatre Artistic Director Michael Rohd uses for his collaborative work with groups in a variety of settings. The training includes strategies to devise performance material, build community, examine the potential of site-specific activity, and investigate social and political issues through arts-based dialogue. The week will include a variety of approaches to performance and facilitation, including theater of event (story, metaphor, action, and architecture); improvisation; documentary theater; inquiry and dialogue activities; and movement and group composition work.
For information or registration for Sojourn Theatre’s institute call 971.544.0464 or e-mail sojourntheatre@aol.com.
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About Animating Democracy |
Animating Democracy is a four-year initiative of Americans for the Arts and is made possible with support from the Ford Foundation.
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Share With Us! |
Do you have news you would like to share with Animating Democracy and the broader world of art and civic engagement? Send an e-mail to adi@artsusa.org with "Animating Democracy E-News" in the subject line. Please be sure to include full contact information.
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