Young Audiences's blog

Since early September, children aged 6-13 have participated in "Keep It Moving!" Taught by teaching artists Cindy Hanna, Kip Ralabate, Leslie Wexler and Sarah Hooper, this residency takes place at a Boys & Girls Club and Salvation Army in Buffalo.

While learning a range of dance styles, the children discuss fun, simple ways to make their lives healthier. After each dance class they explore these topics by writing or drawing in a journal.

\We enjoyed reading some of their answers, and thought you might, too. Pictured here is a student's drawing of a favorite from Cindy Hanna's class, a fun routine set to the disco classic "Car Wash." You can read the rest, and view photos of the students dancing, on our Flickr page.

Join Young Audiences teaching artist Doug Yeomans on December 26 to enjoy a retrospective of his nearly forty years as a Western New York musician. Doug has taught for Young Audiences for years as part of The Stringmen. However, his involvement in various bands and musical endeavors has won him a loyal adult fanbase as well.

On the 26th, he'll be performing with Steve Sadoff, Rob Lynch, Willie Schoellkopf, Jim Ehinger, Jim Whitford and his brother Jim Yeomans. Selections will include his original work as well as classics from a range of styles. Tickets are limited to eighty, to ensure this will be an intimate evening of music and story telling.

Show starts at 7:30. Tickets ($10) are available at the Sportman's, 326 Amherst Street, 716-874-7734.

Young Audiences is pleased to announce four new workshops doffered by Buffalo's reknowned playwright, poet, actor, teacher, singer and costumer Annette Daniels-Taylor.  Her multifaceted and innovative approaches to bringing the written word and history to life ignites the enthusiasm of audiences of all ages. Annette's dynamic personality and theatrical expertise can bring the joy of theater and performance to any classroom or professional development event.

Students may experience a spoken word performance of original, personal poetry and stories in Stories Through the Microphone. This workshop includes writing exercises to help students gain confidence with the writing process and sharing poetry of their own!

Through the This Is What Happened, Playwriting Stories workshop, young writers may focus on translating their most memorable experiences into dramatic short scenes or monologues set for the stage.

The Mama Songs workshop celebrates childhood memories and illustrates the important relationships we share with the people who raise us. Poetry and prose songs are performed over hip-hop beats and students are given the chance to practice writing poetic memoirs about themselves and their families.

Allow students to engage to engage with New York State's integral role in history involving the Erie Canal, the Women's Suffrage Movement, and freedom through Daniels-Taylor's Nancy Goes to Seneca Falls performance, created for Young Audiences of WEstern NEw York. Annette brings to life a character based on a real wife, mother and former slave named Nancy Freeman. It is 1848, and Nancy is traveling in her husband's boat down the Erie Canal to be part of the Women' s Convention in Seneca Falls, NY. Nancy shares stories and songs about life as a slave, and her life as a free woman on New York' s Erie Canal.

Many of Annette's programs can be tailored to suit a variety of classroom subjects. These workshops are also available for adult audiences as a professional development event. Call the Young Audiences of WNY office for more details on booking Annette at your school or workplace!

Watch this video to see what 2nd and 7th grade students did with Annette during their residency in 2008-2009.

Annette Daniels Taylor at Buffalo Public School #43 from Young Audiences on Vimeo.

Teachers and Administrators from Holley Central School District joined together with Young Audience of Western New York staff in early November for a professional development retreat that highlilghted the key aspects of the Empire State Partnership we share.

The evening was led by Young Audiences' master juggler and wordsmith extraordinaire, Nels Cremean. Nels encouraged participants that "play" can be a necessary component to problem solving and exemplified how humor can be an essential element to creating a successful workplace or classroom. Teachers identified and reevaluated partnership goals while trying their hand at team improvisation, balancing acts and even juggling!

Young Audiences of Western New York has been bringing teaching artists into Holley classrooms for the past three years to collaborate with teachers in creating meaningful, curriculum-specific residencies for students in PreK-12th grade.  This partnership is funded in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts.

Last week our Arts & Education Director, Sunnylee Mowery, attended a reading event at the Charter School for Applied Technologies. This career-prep Buffalo school hosted its annual Celebration of Reading over four days, inviting 150 Erie County professionals to read to students. Sunny is shown here reading a book called Gasp! to second graders. She made sure all the children gasped right along with the book. This was also an opportunity for children to ask the visitors about their careers. When asked if she earned "as much as a baseball player," Sunny replied that she did not, but she did get to talk to fascinating teaching artists every single day.

Today, as Business First recognizes one of our newest Board Members, Jill Sessa, with its esteemed "40 Under Forty" Award, it seems like a fitting day to officially welcome the new leadership on our Board of Directors.

Our new Board President, Seema Maheshwari, served on our board for three years prior to taking the helm. Ms. Maheshwari was born in India, moved to Canada at age 13, and studied radiation therapy as a young adult. Now a Williamsville resident and mother of two daughters in college, she has been involved in the Williamsville East PTA, headed the school’s post-prom committee for two years and currently sits on the Amherst Task Force committee.

Maria Emmi Schory, a recent retiree from the Buffalo Public Schools, is the new Board Vice President. A special education coordinator, Ms. Schory graduated from SUNY Buffalo with a BA in Communication Disorders and an MS Ed. in Speech Pathology from Buffalo State College. She volunteers for the annual Catholic Charities Appeal and the United Way of Buffalo and Erie County. She resides in Grand Island with her husband Carl and daughter Carla.

Also new to our board:

• Anthony Billoni, Director of the Erie-Niagara Tobacco-Free Coalition for the Roswell Park Cancer Institute
• Nicole Carroll, English teacher and counselor for homeless and at-risk youth
• Ryan Carroll, Recruiter for StraussGroup
• Mike Hickok, Director of Online Services/Community Education at Catholic Health
• Corrin Matthews, underwriter for WNED and owner of WNY Hypnosis
• Robin Needham, Media Supervisor for Eric Mower and Associates
• Jill Sessa, Associate Director of Development for the UB School of Management/UB Foundation
• Ann Marie Szymanski, Communication Designer for BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York
• Bernadette Walsh, Global Customer Support Manager for National Air Cargo, Inc.

Photo of Nicole Carroll discussing our Traveling Museum during "Young Audiences Travel the Erie Canal" at the Albright-Knox on October 9th, 2009.

President Obama has appointed 25 new members to the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities. These include Yo-Yo Ma, a longtime member of Young Audiences National Board of Directors. Here is a classic photo of our former Executive Director, Helga MacKinnon, meeting Ma about fifteen years ago during a YA event.

Complete list of appointees:
• Edward Norton, New York NY
• Forest Whitaker, Los Angeles, CA
• George C. Wolfe, New York, NY
• Alfre Woodard, Los Angeles, CA
• Kerry Washington, Los Angeles, CA
• Anna Wintour, New York, NY
• Teresa Heinz Kerry, Washington, DC
• Vicki Kennedy, Pacific Palisades, CA
• Jill Udall, Santa Fe, NM
• Thom Mayne, Los Angeles, CA
• Damian Woetzel, New York, NY
• Bryan Lourd, Los Angles, CA
• Dick Cohen, St. Paul, MN
• Ricky Arriola, Miami, FL
• Alexa Wesner, Austin, TX
• Liz Manne, New York, NY
• Anne Luzzatto, New York, NY
• Agnes Varis, New York, NY
• Reggie Van Lee, Washington, DC
• Paula Crown, Chicago, IL
• Christine Forester, La Jolla, CA
• Madeleine Berman, Franklin, MI
• Sarah Jessica Parker, New York, NY
• Yo Yo Ma, Boston, MA
• Andy Spahn, Universal City, CA

New Residency in Development

Young Audiences is developing an Underground Railroad in Western New York Residency, with generous support from the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo. This multidisciplinary series of workshops will explore the history of the Underground Railroad, while also addressing contemporary racial and ethnic disparities in Western New York.

The project's lead teaching artist, Annette Daniels-Taylor, has explored many of the racial and ethnic issues surrounding the subject with her award winning play, “A Little Bit of Paradise,” premiered by Road Less Traveled Productions in 2008.

Call to Artists

In relation to this project, Young Audiences is issuing a call to area African American artists who may have an interest in becoming teaching artists. Such individuals or groups are invited to contact the organization at 881-0917 or info [at] yawny [dot] org (email us). They should provide a one-page proposal and brief work sample (DVD, CD, images, or written work), of an arts-based, 45-minute workshop or performance about the Underground Railroad's role in WNY history.  The deadline for these submissions is November 30.

Partner Spotlight

Thanks go to the Ujima Theatre Company for dedicating its Loft Theatre in the early spring of 2010 for community workshops to develop this reisdency. We are also grateful to its Ujima's Artistic Director, Lorna C. Hill, for devoting her energies and wisdom to the project.

We're looking forward to attending Ujima's Pro Love Tour on November 20th at 8pm. This gathering of artists, poets, dancers, and musicians will celebrate the many ways unconditional love can transform our relationships with each other and our community. You can visit their website for more details.

The Pro Love Tour will take place at the Historic Riviera Theatre, 67 Webster Street North Tonawanda. Box office: 692-2413. Tickets Available at www.rivieratheatre.org or by calling Amilcar Hill at 480-8542.

Our annual Arts Abilities Conference brings teaching artists and educators together every spring to explore methods of engaging learners with special needs. When will the 2010 conference take place? That's what we'd like to hear from you! Vote for your preferred dates on our free Doodle survey.

Families from around Buffalo joined Young Audiences at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery on October 9 for a free event based on our residency program, Journeys and Journals: A Trip Down the Erie Canal.

Workshops led by Gerald Mead, Melissa Kate and Helga MacKinnon were followed by performances by Gretchen Murray Sepik and The Stringmen. In addition to providing fun, enriching activities to the young participants, we spoke with educators and parents eager to learn more about Young Audiences.

We could not have carried off this event without the help of our volunteers: Maria Emmi Schory, Nicole Carroll, Seema Maheshwari, Corrin Matthews, Marian Giordano, Maria Hager, Karen Quaranto, Susan Mikula, and Ann Marie Szymanski. Thanks also to Sarah Ruszczyk, Program Coordinator at the Albright-Knox, and of course, to our talented teaching artists!

This photo is of a student creating a collage postcard in Gerald Mead's workshop.

Find us on Facebook to enjoy more photos from the event!