VSA arts Announces 2006 - 2007 Programs

March 1, 2006

Through the affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing arts, the talent of artists with disabilities shines brighter than ever

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 1, 2006 -- VSA arts today released its highlights of 2006 – 2007 programming in performing arts, visual arts, and arts in education focused on people with disabilities. VSA arts is an affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Soula Antoniou, VSA arts president said, “The goal of our programs is to showcase the talents of emerging artists with disabilities and to encourage inclusive learning environments for all students through the arts.”

In September 2006, VSA arts Playwright Discovery Program will pay tribute to the stage and the craft by honoring an emerging young playwright and a teacher with a performance at the Kennedy Center. The performance will mark the 22nd anniversary presentation of a one-act play by a student playwright. In May, The International Young Soloists Program will spotlight the talents of young musicians with disabilities onstage at the Kennedy Center. During the evening, The Rosemary Kennedy International Young Soloists Award will be presented to an outstanding international artist.

VSA arts visual arts programs for the season begin with a juried exhibit of work by young artists with disabilities age 16 – 25. Sponsored by Volkswagen of America, the 2006 exhibit, Destination Anywhere will be launched on Capitol Hill in September. “The extraordinary aspect of this program is that the art is unparalleled in this age group,” Antoniou said. “The purpose of this program is to identify the talent, not the disability.”

In 2005, Volkswagen presented the largest monetary award in any competition of artists 25 and under. Throughout the year the collection is seen in Washington and on college campuses around the United States. The 2005 exhibit Shifting Gears shown at the S. Dillon Ripley Center at the Smithsonian Institution from September – November 2005 is now on a thirteen-college tour booked into 2008.

Transformation, an international visual arts exhibit featuring artists with disabilities, will be launched as part of the Start with the Arts Family Festival and remain on exhibit at the Kennedy Center throughout June.

VSA arts education programming is highlighted by the 3rd International Research Symposium to expand the influence of the arts in educating students with disabilities. Complementing the research symposium, VSA arts Institutes provide teachers with tools and training to include students of all abilities in learning through the arts. In 2006-2007, VSA arts Institutes will be held in two U.S. cities.

The first VSA arts Teaching Artist Fellowship program will launch with five teaching artists with disabilities selected from a competitive field. The Fellows will take part in a year long arts in education learning experience. The program will run from June 2006 through June 2007.

Arts in education programming continues in March with the launch of Let Your Style Take Shape, an art program developed in collaboration with Weekly Reader division Lifetime Learning Systems and acclaimed artist Kong Ho, to help middle school students learn math concepts through the arts. Awardees of VSA arts and MetLife Foundation’s Arts Connect All funding opportunity will also be announced in March. Arts Connect All encourages arts organizations to strengthen partnerships with local public schools by creating or enhancing multi-session, inclusive education programs.

ArtLink and MusicLink, cross-cultural, international art and music exchanges, focus on encouraging arts in schools. One piece of art from each classroom participating in ArtLink will result in the VSA arts Children’s Exhibit at Union Station during the Start with the Arts Family Festival in June. Selections from The Writing Project, an international call to students for flash fiction and poetry will be published in an online literary journal – Infinite Difference – at www.vsarts.org.

In the spring of 2007, as part of the Kennedy Center Shakespeare Festival, VSA arts will present a production of Much Ado about Nothing in partnership with Philadelphia’s Amaryllis Theatre Company. This fully accessible production will be a completely new translation in a blend of American Sign Language and Spoken English. The cast will include actors with and without disabilities.

Celebrating art, education, and community, the Start with the Arts Family Festival, a week-long, early childhood festival, which includes artist demonstrations, teacher activities, and visual and performing arts experiences, will take place in June. VSA arts is the creator of Start with the Arts©, a comprehensive early childhood learning resource for classrooms that encourages the development of literacy and school readiness skills. Festival events and activities are planned for Union Station, The Kennedy Center and in open-air parks throughout the city.

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About VSA arts

VSA arts, an affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1974 by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to create a society where all people with disabilities learn through, participate in and enjoy the arts. VSA arts provides educators, parents, and artists with resources and the tools to support arts programming in schools and communities. VSA arts showcases the accomplishments of artists with disabilities and promotes increased access to the arts for people with disabilities. Each year millions of people participate in VSA arts programs through a nationwide network of affiliates and in more than 60 countries around the world. For more information visit www.vsarts.org.

Media Contact

Marcia Rhodes / VSA arts, (202) 628-2800, ext. 3883, marciar@vsarts.org

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