Allied Arts

Did you know that children who participate regularly in arts activities are more likely to hold school leadership positions, volunteer in the community and have consistent school attendance? It's true, and perhaps no one knows these stats better than the executive director for Oklahoma Children's Theatre - Lyn Adams.

Find out more about Oklahoma Children's Theatre below. Do we have any Oklahoma Children's Theatre graduates out there? If so, leave us a comment and tell us about your experiences...you know Lyn would LOVE it!

Name and Title: Lyn Adams, Executive Director
Organization Name: Oklahoma Children’s Theatre
Organization Phone Number and Web Site:  www.oklahomachildrenstheatre.org or 405 606-7003

Give us the gist of your organization.
Oklahoma Children’s Theatre offers 8 main theatre productions during the year for children and families. During the summer, two productions are performed using young actors in a combination of age appropriate roles. Productions come with an educational resource guide for teachers and parents.

We also tour several productions throughout the state. More than 60 rural and underserved communities are visited in a year.

We are committed to the education of our youth and thus provide Summer, Winter, Fall and Spring Break camps for children. More than 1,300 children participated in camps last year. School year, Saturday morning and weekday creative drama classes are conducted with an emphasis on process rather than product. We have a home school program as well as very successful preschool program.

Lastly, Oklahoma Children’s Theatre provides after school creative drama programs throughout the school year with several local schools including Putnam Heights Elementary. 

What does your organization bring to Central Oklahoma?
Opportunities for kids to participate in something that gives them confidence, self esteem, fun and social learning skills

List a few things that your organization is looking forward to in the coming year.
Kids, kids, kids, kids…summer time is the absolute best because we have hundreds of kids every day all summer and every one of them is involved with creative projects, making new friends and loving the applause!  It’s the best.

How can people get involved with your organization? 
The very best way to get involved with Oklahoma Children’s Theatre is to come see a show! Just like a fish, you will be hooked. We have several events throughout the year where help is always needed and very much appreciated. 

Name your favorite piece of art or art performance.
Without a doubt my favorite art is anything by Disney!  Everything they do is fantastic!

Which artist would you most like to meet?  
Writer Roald DahI. I absolutely love his children’s stories and his wicked sense of humor. My favorite book of his is “The Witches”.

Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known.

- Oscar Wilde

This week has certainly been a busy media week for Allied Arts!

Today, we send a special thank you to The City Sentinel. The City Sentinel formed a new partnership with Allied Arts, allowing President/CEO Deborah McAuliffe Senner to contribute arts-related articles in a special monthly bylined column titled "Art Matters."

Deborah's first column appeared in the Dec. 30 – Jan. 5 edition of the paper. In the spirit of the New Year, she challenged readers to make it a resolution to support the arts in 2010.

Pick up The City Sentinel and be on the lookout for future“Art Matters” columns. And thanks again to The City Sentinel for providing Allied Arts with an outlet to promote the arts in Oklahoma City!

The start of a new year can cause one to be open to new experiences, which are exactly what our member agencies are offering this weekend. Enroll in a class, try out your singing voice or experience the arts from the Emerald Isle – you can do it all right here in OKC!

Enrollment for winter classes is now open
@ City Arts Center
http://www.cityartscenter.org/
Classes begin January 18; 15% off with OKCityCard

Red Dirt Improv
@ IAO
http://iaogallery.org/
Friday & Saturday

Guest night
@ OK City Chorus
http://okcity.org/
Tuesday, January 12

Chris Rock’s Good Hair – Film Screening
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/
Thursday – Sunday

Black Dynamite – Film Screening
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/
Friday & Saturday

Drop in Art – Winterland Watercolors
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/
Saturday, 1 – 4 p.m.; FREE with museum admission
(Museum admission is 2-for-1 with your OKCityCard)

Cherish the Ladies Traditional Irish Music and Dance
@ Oklahoma City Philharmonic
http://www.okcphilharmonic.org/
Friday & Saturday
2-for-1 admission with OKCityCard

We were so thrilled to pick up our January copy of Distinctly Oklahoma yesterday. Not only is there a feature on Allied Arts, but editor Justin Brotton and his team included Allied Arts on the cover!



We hope you'll pick up a copy. The writer - Keith Eaton - really showcases the importance of Allied Arts (and our member agencies, of course) and outlines how you can help.

We'll keep you updated with more "Allied Arts in the News." Thanks again to all of our local media who really understand and capture the importance of the arts to Cental Okalhoma.

Just wanted to give a HUGE shout out to Southwestern Publishing for being such a fantastic supporter of the arts. They ran an AMAZING article on Allied Arts in four of their magazines this month: NWStyle, Oklahoma City Downtown, Norman Living and Nichols Hills News, in addition to running articles on the Oklahoma City Ballet and City Arts Center, among other arts groups.

Check out the article on Allied Arts below and be on the lookout for more great arts news in Oklahoma City-area media.

 

Visit http://www.southwesternpub.com/ for more information about Southwestern’s magazines.

With the New Year fast approaching, it looks like Opening Night 2010 will be the weekend’s main event!  But don’t forget about what’s going on at the Museum of Art – the last weekend for a special exhibit and a film screening to start the New Year off right.

Opening Night 2010 – TONIGHT!
@ Arts Council of Oklahoma City
http://www.artscouncilokc.com/
You still have time to get 2-for-1 admission with your OKCityCard! See the Arts Council website for wristband sales locations.  With a scavenger hunt, performers, entertainment, restaurants and a fireworks finale, Opening Night is sure to be the biggest party in OKC!

The Dutch Italianates – Last weekend for this special exhibit!
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/
2-for-1 admission with OKCityCard

The New Year Parade, Film Screening – Saturday & Sunday
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/
2-for-1 admission with OKCityCard

Stay tuned for more arts events in 2010!  What are you looking forward to?

Are arts and athletics your thing? If so, the Thunder has a contest for you!

To celebrate Kevin Durant’s new Nike KD2 shoe design, the Thunder is holding a contest encouraging all budding artists to create their own pair of Thunder-inspired sneakers. The best entries from the adult and child categories will each win a pair of Durant’s Nike KD2s at the Dec. 16 game against the Dallas Mavericks.

Check out the Thunder’s Web site, thunder.nba.com, (or click here) for an entry form and template to create your unique design. Show-off (or should we say shoe-off?) your artsy side and get creative!

You’ll want to hurry…the design deadline is Jan. 16.

Also, beginning January 1, you can get 2-for-1 tickets to Loud City with your OKCityCard. So grab an OKCityCard, design your sneaker and head to the game to see the Thunder in action! www.okcitycard.com

Hi all,

We hope your holidays were wonderful!

What better way to get back into the swing of things, then by meeting Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art? This museum is amazing for so many reasons, but my personal favorite is Tutu the mummy. You'll learn more about her below, but you can also check her out on Facebook (@Tutu Mummy). LOVE it!  

Name and Title: Dane Pollei, Director and Chief Curator
Organization Name: Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art
Organization Phone Number and Web Site: 405-878-5300, www.mgmoa.org
 
Give us the gist of your organization, Twitter-style (that means 140 characters or less).
One of the oldest museums in Oklahoma, the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art has the broadest art collection showing 8,000 years of human expression. The Museum creates unique exhibitions, has an active schedule of lectures, classes, free community art days, teacher training programs, and school programs.

What does your organization bring to Central Oklahoma? 
The Museum brings the world to Oklahoma through an art collection featuring works from ancient Egypt, medieval and Renaissance artwork, American and European paintings, Oriental, Native American, African and contemporary works of art.

Last year, the Mabee-Gerrer worked with more than 7,300 K-12 students. Schools visited from throughout central Oklahoma and from as far away as Talihina and Ringling. Scholars and artists from throughout the United States regularly work with the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art.

The Museum’s arts integration teacher training uses the permanent collection to provide central Oklahoma teachers with unique ways to meet state curriculum objectives in art, history, science, language arts and social studies.

The Egyptian collection is considered one of, if not the, finest of its kind between Chicago and Los Angeles. The medieval and renaissance holdings are also unique to our state.  Interns come from virtually all the area universities and from as far away as the University of Toronto. Several of our interns have gone on to very prominent positions in the museum profession. 

List a few things that your organization is looking forward to in the coming year.
The Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art was selected to host the exhibition “Ancient Bronzes of the Asian Grasslands from the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation” from January 23 to March 28, 2010. On Friday, January 29th, Dr. Trudy Kawami, Director of Research for the Sackler Foundation will talk about this unique culture in a lecture that is free to the public.

The Museum has support from several generous donors to offset the cost of admission to Oklahoma schools and home school groups as well as a limited number of busing grants so we hope to continue or even increase the number of students visiting the Museum.

How can people get involved with your organization?
People can volunteer, become members, attend workshops or community art days, enroll their kids in After School Art or our summer camps, and visit the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art. You can visit www.mgmoa.org to learn more.

Anyone on Facebook can become a fan of the Museum’s page or if you want to have even more fun, you can become a friend of Tutu, the mummy at the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art. Tutu shares information about her life and times, fun activities for families and educators, and updates you on current Egyptian research and activities at the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art. She’s got lots of friends but welcomes more!

Name your favorite piece of art or art performance.
My favorite artwork seems to change almost every time I walk through the Mabee-Gerrer Museum galleries or storage area (95% of the collection is in storage.) I have to admit that right now my favorite painting is the Museum’s most recent major acquisition, “Portrait of Michele Surbano, Venetian Ambassador,” by the late renaissance master Tintoretto. The painting was donated to the Museum by Gene and Cheryl Melton of Oklahoma City this past October. It is a great addition to our Renaissance collection. The painting would be a welcome addition to the collection of the Met, the National Gallery, Art Institute or any major museum as there are very few Tintoretto’s in the United States. The fact that it will remain in Oklahoma and be seen by thousands of residents, tourists and school kids makes it very special.

My favorite performance piece is a modern dance commission called “Dream Child Dancing” by Rebecca Stenn and her company. I’m also very impressed with the dance program at St. Gregory’s University in Shawnee. Students majoring in dance are part of the Spirit and Soul Dance Ensemble under the direction of Liz Reiter. It is one of the best small modern dance programs I’ve seen and their performances are wonderful.

Which artist would you most like to meet?
There are so many that it’s hard to decide. I would love to have met Kathe Kollwitz.  She truly believed that art was for everyone and should promote human rights and social justice.

Of course, I would also like to have met Fr. Gregory Gerrer, O.S.B., the Benedictine monk who was the artist and scholar who helped the monks of St. Gregory’s Abbey establish the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art. He had the opportunity in the early 20th century to travel extensively in the United States and throughout the world. His dream was to establish a museum for all Oklahomans who didn’t have that opportunity. All of the items originally selected for the collection, then and now, have been selected because of their quality and ability to teach people about our world. The Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art is a nonprofit organization that holds that mission of artistic quality and education as our core value.

Because I’m so familiar with the collection, and I have met many of the Benedictine monks that knew Fr. Gerrer, I feel that in some way I have met him.

Metropolitan School of Dance is one great organization! MSDI instructors teach dance and exercise to so many Oklahoma City students (the young and ... not as young). We're thrilled to support the great work that they do.

Name and Title: Fran Pitts, Executive Director
Organization Name: Metropolitan School of Dance, Incorporated (MSDI)
Organization Phone Number and Web Site: 405-236-5026
 
Give us the gist of your organization, Twitter-style (that means 140 characters or less).
Classical dance training in ballet, Pointe, modern, African, tap and jazz to students ages 3 to adult in the Greater Oklahoma City area

What does your organization bring to Central Oklahoma?
Affordable quality dance instruction open to all who are interested during both the fall and spring sessions as well as summer dance programming

List a few things that your organization is looking forward to in the coming year.
We are looking forward to reaching more young people in the NE quadrant of Oklahoma City with added community outreach instruction, coupled with new experiences of engaging our community in the art of dance. 

How can people get involved with your organization?
Become a patron!  Support MSDI programming to at-risk youth by giving financially or by volunteering at key fundraisers or in house programming

Name your favorite piece of art or art performance. 
At our organization, my answer is “Lamba.” Outside of MSDI, I enjoyed Alvin Aileys’ “Revelations.”

Which artist would you most like to meet? Debbie Allen