Arts Fest

Keeping the Beat: Green Street Encourages Life-Long Students

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A Note of Thanks

Thank you to everyone who attended our Opening Evening on September 10th; the night was a great success and we enjoyed meeting new friends and seeing familiar faces.  We’d like to thank Michael Roth, Wesleyan University President, Sonia Mañjon, Wesleyan University Vice President for Institutional Partnerships and Chief Diversity Officer, and our incredible Green Street Advisory Board members and Wesleyan Trustees who joined in the festivities and showed their support for GSAC.  We hope you all experienced some of the great offerings, like the salsa workshop, West African Drumming and Dancing, and family art projects.  Green Street is fortunate to have fantastic advocates like you.  Buster and Paola, two of our supporters, have shared their Green Street experience with us below.

Keeping the Beat

Green Street Arts Center is an essential part of our lifelong learning process.  Buster and I are both teachers. He teaches fourth grade at Macdonough School in Middletown and I teach sixth grade at Sunset Ridge Elementary Academy for Arts and World Languages in East Hartford. He is a Middletown native and I live in Glastonbury, which makes for a convenient commute to Green Street for both of us.  Last spring, we participated in the West African Drumming: Djembe Orchestra class led by expert instructors Jocelyn Pleasant and Aaron Greenberg, who teach with humor and patience. We not only practiced drum technique, but also learned about the various rhythms and cultures of West African countries with our diverse, energetic, and good-natured classmates.

In addition to expert instruction and welcoming classmates, another key feature of the Green Street Arts Center is its partnership with the greater Middletown community.  As a culmination to our drumming course, many class members joined the instructors and younger Green Street students to perform at a community festival celebrating the arts open to all.  For a novice musician such as me, performing a public concert for an intergenerational audience was thrilling!

Buster and I always look forward to Green Street’s new course offerings because they stretch our minds and rejuvenate our spirits.  In the future, we hope to explore Salsa dancing, creative writing, martial arts, and of course, more drumming.

Thank you, Green Street Arts Center for helping us stay bright and lively!

Sincerely,

Paola Maina and Buster NelsonFall Catalog Cover
Submitted by Paola Maina and Buster Nelson, Green Street students and After School support staff

If, like Paola and Buster, you are interested in staying bright and lively through one of Green Street’s offerings, view our fall course catalog here.  To become a member and receive great discounts at Green Street and partner organizations around the state, email gsac@wesleyan.edu or call (860) 685-7871.  Click here for all of the membership benefits. We look forward to hearing from you.

Green Street’s 6th Annual Arts Fest: from Popcorn to “Pickles”

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Popcorn Arts Fest '10On Saturday, June 12th, the Green Street Arts Center was filled with excitement.  The 6th Annual Arts Festival took place and, despite the rain, was a great success.  With performances like “Pickles” from the Songwriting class and the debut of “Middletown: Our Town”, an animated video created by the Digital Animation class, the entertainment was energetic, captivating, and certainly inspiring.

Even before entering the building, the festival’s energy was already evident.  Teaching artist Anna had a line of eager kids waiting to get their faces painted, the neighborhood ice cream truck was popular as ever, and Frank was busily handing out free popcorn.  Upon entering Green Street, you could already smell delicious food provided by our partners at Esca Restaurant & Wine Bar, Iguanas Ranas Taqueria, and Firehouse Steakhouse.  Jerry’s Pizza had a table with free pizza that was always surrounded by hungry Arts Fest attendees.  Broad Street Books brought a great assortment of arts supplies and books, and DeFabrica Therapeutic Massage was very popular, constantly providing people with refreshing massages.

Arts Fest Drumming '10
Drumming at Arts Fest '10

After satisfying their hunger, guests could choose from a variety of amusements.  The African Drumming classes were set up in the Multipurpose Room, providing hours of rhythmic entertainment.  Adults and kids alike were invited to do arts and crafts in both the Wet and Dry Arts Rooms.  Meanwhile, across the hall in the Performance Studio there was constant action, with breakdancing, musical performances, salsa dancing, animated videos, hip-hop, and more, continuously provided enjoyment for an exuberant audience.

Students in the Breakdancing class staged a breakdance battle to showcase their unbelievable moves.  Young musicians displayed their talents in solo performances, as well as collectively in the Songwriting class’s amusing song “Pickles”.  The salsa class inspired the audience to move and grove to Latin beats, and the Digital Animation class highlighted their skills with a video called “Middletown: Our Town”.  ThoroEnergy also wowed the audience with a dramatic and engaging hip-hop performance.

Breakdancer
Breakdancing Battle

When Arts Fest ended, attendees left with smiles on their faces, students left with a sense of pride in their accomplishments, and the staff were pleased with the success of the event and happy to have made new friends.

For more great pictures of the event, check out our Facebook page here.

If you are interested in learning more about how your child can get involved in one of these (or other) great classes, call us at (860) 685-7871 or email gsac@wesleyan.edu. For more information on upcoming events and classes, visit our website at www.greenstreetartscenter.org.

Submitted by Lisa Bruno, Development Assistant

Arts Fest: Thoroughly Obsessed

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Arts Fest postcardGreen Street’s Annual Arts Festival is something I, and all of Green Street’s friends, look forward to each year.  This year’s Arts Fest will take place on Saturday, June 12 and is sure to be an afternoon filled with creativity, excitement, food, and fun.  ArtsFest is a great way for our students to showcase their hard work and successes throughout the year, and for the community to join us and participate in the fun as well.

This year features performances from Fresh Obsessed

Salsa Dancers
Salsa Dancers Arts Fest '09

breakdancing crew, ThoroEnergy hip hop crew, salsa students, and music classes.  I am especially excited for the West African Djembe Orchestra- a diverse group of people ages 7 to 57 from the After School program, adult class, and Cromwell Children’s Home residency program who will be performing together.  With the strong lead of teachers Jocelyn and Aaron, the group will rock out the beats of Lamban, Makru, and Yankadi.

For the first time, our outside attractions will include delicious food from partners in our membership program.  We are pleased to welcome Esca Restaurant & Wine Bar, Iguanas Ranas Taqueria, Jerry’s Pizza, Broad Street Books, and DeFabrica Therapeutic Massage to the festivities.

Painting Green Street
Facepainting Arts Fest '09

While enjoying live performances and great food, you will also be able to meander through the building to view the artwork, stop by a classroom for a free mini-class in Salsa or visual arts.  You can enter a raffle to win a free Green Street class or even plants from Starlight Gardens in Durham.  Don’t miss out on a chance to sign up for Summer classes right on the spot.

In addition to this scintillating array of amusements, mural artist Marela Zacarias will begin painting the new mural, designed by Green Street students, across the street at St. Vincent dePaul’s Place. All community members are welcome and encouraged to help out.

By the way, have I mentioned that all of this is free?  It is!  I hope to see you there!

Green Street Arts Festival & Open House
Saturday, June 12, 2010
1-3pm
FREE
51 Green Street, Middletown, CT 06457
www.greenstreetartscenter.org

Submitted by Rachel Roccoberton Griffin, Administrative Assistant