CreativePlace

The AARP has begun to do creative placemaking through its Livable Communities initiative, and we interviewed a New Jersey chapter leader who  innovated a Facebook live series as a way to connect the community during the pandemic. The series engaged New Jersey musicians and a local music historian to entertain, engage, and educate the public about research findings on the positive correlation between music making and listening and brain health. Listen in on this conversation with Christine Newman-Young, Director of Outreach at the AARP-New Jersey chapter and creator of the Melodies of the Garden State series, which was webcast in September and October of 2020. The chat was part of The National Consortium for Creative Placemaking's Community Coffee Talk series recorded September 24, 2020. Host: Andrea Orlando [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreamorlando/]lives, records, and writes from her home in New Jersey. Contact her at andrea.orlando.530@gmail.com

Recorded Sept. 10, 2020 What does back to school look like when it’s an art form that requires space to move the body? In this recording from a Community Coffee Talk show we asked creative movement professionals. Guests were Ginger Haithcox, Executive Director of Modern Motion in Somerset, NJ and Paul Besaw, professor of dance at the University of Vermont. Armanii Saahd-Tann, Creative Director of Rahway Dance Theatre made a brief appearance via pre-recorded audio. Bios appear below. Want to be a part of our next live, interactive program? Ginger Haithcox is the Executive Director of Modern Motion. She started Modern Motion in 2005 after her ballet instructor in college encouraged her to pursue founding a nonprofit dance company. Initially focused on liturgical dance for local churches and teaching at local dance studios, her vision for Modern Motion soon included a full scale dance school for children. Founded in 2010, Modern Motion Dance School had humble beginnings with Monday night classes all taught by Ginger while she built her career in non-profit ministries and youth serving organizations. Her leadership of Modern Motion dance school has focused on the development, training, and implementation of the school's curriculum; building up a youth leadership and mentoring program for older dancers; widespread community outreach performances; as well as extensive staff development. Paul Besaw who was born and raised in rural New Hampshire. He’s a dance and theatre artist with a primary interest in developing original performance works that integrate collaboration across art forms. He currently serves as Professor and Interim Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance at The University of Vermont, where he teaches courses in choreography, dance history, directing, performance, among others. Armanii Saahd-Tann made a brief appearance by pre-recorded video is the artistic director and owner of Rahway Dance Theatre, a 20 year old local ballet school. RDT aims to share the gift of dance with the community by showcasing cultural diversity, by using dance as an educational tool, and by clearing the biases of who is "fit" to be a dancer. Armanii's life work thus far has been to lead by example in helping dancers of all ages to feel empowered in their own skin - no matter their physique or experience in dance. Host: Andrea Orlando [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreamorlando/]lives, records, and writes from her home in New Jersey. Contact her at andrea.orlando.530@gmail.com

Listen in on this chat with theater artists Darryl DeLoach and Juli Hendren of CworxTraining.com [http://www.cworxtraining.com] and PositivePolicing based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The pair have been using their theater arts tools to make interactions between law enforcement officers and young men of color safer. We had a conversation with them on July 23, 2020 as part of our Community Coffee Talk series, an unscripted, interactive video show for creative placemakers. Hear their exchange with other artists from across the country. Host: Andrea Orlando [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreamorlando/]lives, records, and writes from her home in New Jersey. Contact her at andrea.orlando.530@gmail.com

Want to learn the secrets of crowdfunding? Join The National Consortium for Creative Placemaking [http://www.cpcommunities.org] as we chat with the innovators atioby.org [http://www.ioby.org], who specialize in providing technical assistance, support, and a legal financial structure for community volunteers who crowdsource funding under a variety of circumstances. At the onset of quarantine, the non-profit organization stepped up with additional support for projects that specifically responded to the pandemic, and that included creative placemaking initiatives to care for artists and commission art that communicates public health messages. In this talk, ioby.org Community and Growth Manager, Dana J. Schneider, will introduce community leaders from Detroit and New Orleans, who will talk about how they care for artists and their communities during this crisis. This is the lineup of guests and their projects: Amelia Duran, Art on the Block: Detroit Artist and Community Relief Fund Eno Laget, URGENT: Shelter in Place Billboards in Detroit Neighborhoods Lindsay Glatz, Revelry: A visual celebration of New Orleans culture helping artists who are struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic Host: Andrea Orlando [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreamorlando/]lives, records, and writes from her home in New Jersey. Contact her at andrea.orlando.530@gmail.com

Listen in on this chat with Kent Kerr and RJ Thompson of Plus Public [https://pluspublic.org/bellevue/] based in Bellevue, PA, just north of Pittsburgh. This live, interactive, open-to-the-public call was recorded on June 11, 2020. Guest hosted by Meghan Rutigliano, Burning Man Cultural Ambassador and Founder of Globally Curated. At the time of recording, Kent was a Master of Fine Arts candidate at Radford University, and his thesis was a research project on using design thinking techniques to uncover how a community thinks of itself. He and RJ did their research in Bellevue, a small, rust-belt town that has experienced something of a renaissance after ending prohibition in 2015. They spoke with The National Consortium for Creative Placemaking [https://www.cpcommunities.org] as part of the organization's Community Coffee Talk program, a series of live, interactive, virtual conversations. Host: Andrea Orlando [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreamorlando/]lives, records, and writes from her home in New Jersey. Contact her at andrea.orlando.530@gmail.com