March 27, 2019 RE: Outreach to Area Schools Contact: Pam Owens, Executive Director The Gaylord Building Phone: (815) 838-9400 Email: [email protected] The Gaylord Building to launch an Artist in Residence Program with Red Clay Dance Company Greetings, The Gaylord Building and the National Trust for Historic Preservation are pleased to announce an artist in residence program with Red Clay Dance Company beginning in June 2019 and continuing throughout the summer. This program, partially funded through a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, is rooted with the underlying goal of preserving African American culture throughout the I & M Canal National Heritage Corridor. Red Clay Dance will conduct a series of FREE workshops and classes in the Gaylord Building’s third-floor gallery, 200 W 8th St., Lockport, beginning on Wednesday, June 5th. Participants can contact the Gaylord Building at (815) 838-9400 for more information or to register for classes. Detailed information is available on the Gaylord Building website www.gaylordbuilding.org. All workshops and classes are free and open to the public. Making the Artivist Workshops The Making the ArtivistTM workshop series helps community minded individuals ages 10 and up build their Artivist Toolkit. Previous dance experience is not required. Workshops provide training in discovering, developing and using your artistic voice to become change agent in your community. As a part of the Making the ArtivistTM participants engage in movement-based activities designed to help individuals activate personal agency, analyze systems within a community, and identify possible solutions to social challenges through art making. Activities include Artivists challenges, structured reflections, and small group discussions. The Making the Artivist training program prepares participants to design an individual or group Artivism project and identify the crucial skills in their Artivist toolkit. The Gaylord Building / 200 W. 8th Street, Lockport, Illinois 60441 [email protected] / 1.815.838.9400 / 1.815.838.9449 / www.gaylordbuilding.org Afro-Contemporary Dance Classes This dance class is beginner level class and introduction into the esthetic of Afro- ContemporaryTM Dance. It is open to ages 18 and over. Afro-ContemporaryTM Dance is a movement style that fuses Africanist movement vocabulary, contemporary dance and Chicago house. Facilitated by Vershawn Sanders-Ward, Founder and Director of Red Clay Dance Company based in Chicago, IL. This class will challenge participants in building core strength, fluidity, joint articulation, memory and rhythmic phrasing. About Red Clay Dance: Founded in July 2008 and based in Chicago, Illinois, Red Clay Dance™ is a professional touring company that creates and performs a diverse repertoire of Afro-Contemporary ™ dance, a fusion of traditional West African movement, Dunham Technique, and Chicago House dance. Red Clay Dance Company was conceived in 2007 while the founder, Vershawn Sanders-Ward, was on her first trip to Senegal, West Africa. During this trip, Vershawn became fascinated by the interconnectedness of dance and everyday life and wanted to incorporate this philosophy into her company. The name Red Clay comes from Vershawn’s childhood memories of playing in red earth during her summers spent in Mobile, AL. "I would play in the red earth, adding water to it, to make all sorts of things. This mixture was like clay, something my hands could work and mold into something spectacular. Unfortunately playing in the red dirt got me in a lot of trouble, because once it’s on your clothes, it never comes off! I want my work to stick with my audience and I don’t want it to ever rub off but be forever intertwined into their life experience and memories." The company is a trendsetter for uniting elite professional dance creation and performance with a social consciousness that spills from the stage to the community. Red Clay possesses the unique ability to offer authentic engagement for dance through creating and performing work within marginalized communities. As a company, they embrace cross-cultural collaborations and have a clear vision to strengthen their local community through collaborative projects between African and Afro-Diaspora artists. Since its inception, Red Clay Dance has created and produced original works that have appeared in arts festivals around the world such Martha’s Vineyard, and Ecole Des Sables/Senegal in addition to self-presenting nine home seasons at venues around Chicago’s south side. as Push Fest , RAD Fest, Dance Chicago, Harvest Chicago Contemporary Dance Festival , Dance Transmissions Festival/Uganda, A.W.A.R.D.S Show/Joyce Soho NYC. About the Gaylord Building: The Gaylord Building, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, played a vital role in the creation of the Illinois & Michigan Canal. A landmark since 1838, this handsome limestone warehouse originally stored canal construction materials and later housed a variety of commercial ventures. Today it is a national example of adaptive reuse, community engagement, and serves as a gateway to the I&M Canal National Heritage Corridor. Do you want to make a difference in your community? Do you like dance? Join Red Clay Dance Company’s Making the Artivist™ workshop series and learn how to use dance to activate change in your community. The Gaylord Building, 3rd Floor Gallery 200 West 8th Street, Lockport, IL 60441 The Making the Artivist™ workshop series helps community minded individuals ages 10 and up build their Artivist Toolkit. Previous dance experience is not required. Workshops provide training in discovering, developing and using your artistic voice to become change agent in your community. Wednesday Sessions- 5:00-6:30pm June 5th June 12th June 19th June 26th Saturday Sessions – Noon to 1:30 p.m. June 8th June 29th To Register access tinyurl.com/RCDCMTA-Gaylord or call (815) 838-9400 “This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency” Afro-Contemporary™ Dance The Gaylord Building, 3rd Floor Gallery 200 West 8th Street, Lockport, IL 60441 This dance class is beginner level class and introduction into the esthetic of Afro-Contemporary™ dance. It is open to ages 18 and over. Afro-Contemporary™ Dance is a movement style that fuses Africanist movement vocabulary, contemporary dance and Chicago house. Facilitated by Vershawn Sanders-Ward, Founder and Director of Red Clay Dance Company based in Chicago, IL. This class will challenge participants in building core strength, fluidity, joint articulation, memory and rhythmic phrasing. Wednesday Sessions- 6:45-7:45pm June 5th June 12th June 19th June 26th July 3rd To Register access tinyurl.com/RCDCAC-Gaylord or call (815) 838-9400 “This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency”.