Art-Reach Presents Philadelphia Premiere of Jazzartsigns on November 19th at 7PM
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- Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 21:46:59 -0400
AllAboutJazz.com
Monday, October 01, 2007
Art-Reach Presents Philadelphia Premiere of Jazzartsigns on November 19th at 7PM
By Lisa Thorson
Multi-Disciplinary Performance Is Accessible to All Audiences
JazzArtSigns performers include Lisa Thorson, vocals; Cercie Miller,
saxophones; Doug Johnson, piano; David Clark, bass; George Schuller, drums;
Nancy Ostrovsky, improvisational painter; Jody Steiner, ASL interpreter; Vince
Lombardi, audio describer; and Don DePew of The Caption Coalition.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - Art-Reach, the nonprofit organization that provides access
to the arts for people with disabilities and economic disadvantages, will
present the Philadelphia premiere of JazzArtSigns, a universally accessible
live performance that incorporates jazz music and improvisational painting in
an interactive, multi-media and multi-sensory cultural experience. The
performance will take place on Monday, November 19, 2007, at 7 p.m. at the
Philadelphia Theatre Company's soon-to-open 365-seat, state-of-the-art
accessible Suzanne Roberts Theater at Broad and Lombard Streets. JazzArtSigns
will be one of the flagship events in the Independence Starts Here! Festival,
Philadelphia's first city-wide festival showcasing art influenced or inspired
by the experience of disability, which takes place October 18 - November 20,
2007.
JazzArtSigns provides a universally accessible, cross-disciplinary concert
experience that redefines the way audiences interact with live performances.
JazzArtSigns features a group of world-class jazz musicians, an improvisational
painter, American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters, live audio description and
text captioning, and program information in Braille, large print and on tape.
This interactive fusion of improvisation, music, visual art, and language
encourages all audiences to participate in the spirit of acceptance, innovation
and cooperation.
JazzArtSigns was developed by Lisa Thorson, an esteemed jazz vocalist, composer
and Berklee College of Music professor who also uses a wheelchair. A performer
for over 30 years, Thorson is well-known as a leading advocate for full access
to the arts for people of all abilities. Called "grand, sassy and seductive" by
the Boston Globe, Thorson creates works in theatre and music that bring people
together to effect social change. She has toured the U.S., Canada and Italy as
a concert artist and jazz clinician, and has produced five recordings as a lead
musician.
JazzArtSigns will be her first large-scale performance in Philadelphia.
JazzArtSigns is unique in its appeal to people of all ages and abilities, since
it combines different visual, musical and communication techniques. Janet
Marcous, faculty member at Northeastern University, states, "JazzArtSigns was
the most extraordinary experience I've ever had with jazz. It left me feeling
incredibly happy and with a sense of freedom that I don't often feel because I
am deaf-blindIt captured every aspect of sound, sense, visionary collections,
musical lyrics, movement, color, details, and contrast." The performance
features American Sign Language interpretation, open captioning and
assisted-listening devices for audiences who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and
audio description and Braille, large-print and audio programs for audiences who
are blind or have low vision.
To ensure that all audiences will have access to the performance, Art-Reach
will provide 15 percent of available tickets for free to its member human
service agencies, schools, and elderly homes serving individuals with
disabilities or economic disadvantages. Art-Reach will also invite participants
from these organizations to take part in one of two free educational workshops
during the day on Monday, November 19th. Artists from JazzArtSigns will lead
both workshops on jazz and painting improvisation. Tickets to JazzArtSigns are
$25 in advance and $35 at the door. To purchase tickets or for more
information, call Art-Reach at 215-568-2115.
Art-Reach is a Delaware Valley nonprofit cultural service organization that
helps underserved audiences to experience arts and cultural programming and
that serves as a community resource by increasing accessibility to cultural
venues and events. Through our programs, each year over 15,000 people of all
ages, economic backgrounds and abilities experience the richness of the arts.
Independence Starts Here: A Festival of Disability Arts and Culture is a
Greater Philadelphia festival that includes work by artists with disabilities
or work that is inspired by the experience of disability or is accessible to
audiences with disabilities. The festival also celebrates and highlights the
work of over 40 arts and disability organizations working to increase cultural
accessibility in greater Philadelphia.
Visit website
http://www.lisathorson.com/jazzartsigns.htm
Lisa Thorson at All About Jazz.
http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/news.php?id=15378
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