Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Portraits of Air

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Jessica Warchall, Visual Arts Publicist, 847-477-8714/Warchall@TrustArts.org
Shaunda Miles, Director of Public Relations, 412-471-1578/Miles@TrustArts.org        
Diana Roth, Communications Manager, 412-471-8717/Roth@TrustArts.org
Images available: TrustArts.org/press
Search: Portraits 2014

PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST PRESENTS
PORTRAITS OF AIR: PITTSBURGH
A CROWD-SOURCED EXHIBITION
June 6 – July 13, 2014 | 709 Penn Gallery
Exhibition Opening & Reception | June 6 | 5 – 7 p.m.

Pittsburgh, PA—The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents the visual art exhibition Portraits of Air: Pittsburgh by Detroit-based artist Susan Goethel Campbell. Crowd-sourced during the 2013 Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, this installation is the culmination of the yearlong project, on view at the Trust’s 709 Penn Gallery from June 6–July 13, 2014. The exhibition, made possible through the generous support of the Heinz Endowments in partnership with the Breathe Project, opens in conjunction with the 2014 Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival.

The installation shows the results of nearly 100 8 × 10 in., framed spun-glass air filters placed throughout the Pittsburgh region in ordinary locations, such as the home or workspace. Incorporating photography, sound and the air filters—some of which have remained completely white while others have visible particulates—Campbell creates a visual document of the invisible element of air and invites people to think about the quality of the air they breathe.


“The main goal of this project is to bring awareness to the concept of air. It moves from the local to the global and is necessary to sustain life,” says artist Susan Goethel Campbell. “My hope is that people will see themselves in this project and not necessarily that air is dirty or polluted. What I am most interested in are the [filters’] placements and how these individual sites helped to create a broad portrait of air.”

The installation includes many air filters returned to Campbell after several months of collecting particulates, photographs of filter locations and a sound work titled “Air Moves,” which is a poetic, narrative documentation of the Pittsburgh filter locations as well as sites around the world where Campbell asked people place air filters. A series of woodblock prints based on aerial views of Pittsburgh and other cities in the United States is also on view.

Portraits of Air is an ongoing, unscientific project that focuses on the movement and quality of air around the world. Campbell began the project in 2009 with the distribution of 24 8 × 10 in., air filters to people in seven countries, including 14 locations within the U.S. Each participant in the project was asked to place the filter in a location of their choosing so it could pick up particulates in the atmosphere.

Susan Goethel Campbell is a Detroit-based artist who creates multidisciplinary work that explores the intersection of nature, culture, and engineered environments. She has exhibited in solo and group shows both nationally and internationally, including at The International Print Center, NY; and Kunstverein Wolfsburg, Germany. Campbell has been awarded residencies at the Flemish Center for Graphic Arts, Kasterlee, Belgium; the Beisinghoff Printmaking Residency, Rhoden, Germany; as well as fellowships at the Jentel Foundtation, Banner, WY; and the Kresge Artist Fellowship, Detroit, MI. She received an MFA from the Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI, and taught studio art for 15 years at the College for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI. Campbell’s work is held in public and private collections across the country, including at the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI; The New York Public Library, New York, NY; the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C.; and The Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, OH.
The Heinz Endowments supports efforts to make southwestern Pennsylvania a premier place to live and work, a center for learning and educational excellence and a region that embraces diversity and inclusion.

About 709 Penn Gallery

709 Penn Gallery is a project of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. The gallery is located at 709 Penn Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh’s Cultural District. Gallery Hours: Wed. & Thurs. 11 a.m.–6 p.m.; Fri. & Sat. 11 a.m.–8 p.m.; Sun.11 a.m.–5 p.m. The gallery is free and open to the public. For more information about all gallery exhibitions featured in the Cultural District, please visit TrustArts.org.

About the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival
The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, is a celebration of the arts in downtown Pittsburgh unlike any other in the nation. Each of its world-class, multi-disciplinary performing and visual arts attractions is free to attend and open to the public. The Festival begins on the first Friday in June and takes place at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s famed three rivers in Point State Park, throughout picturesque Gateway Center, and in the city’s world-renowned Cultural District. For more information, visit TrustArts.org/TRAF.

About the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has overseen one of Pittsburgh’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. The District is one of the country’s largest landmasses curated by a single nonprofit arts organization. A major catalytic force in the city, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity. Using the arts as an economic catalyst, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has holistically created a world-renowned Cultural District that is revitalizing the city, improving the regional economy and enhancing Pittsburgh’s quality of life. Thanks to the support of foundations, corporations, government agencies and thousands of private citizens, the Cultural Trust stands as a national model of urban redevelopment through the arts. For more information, visit TrustArts.org.


Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

Public and Visual Art Grace TRAF

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Jessica Warchall, Visual Arts Publicist, 847-477-8714/Warchall@TrustArts.org
Shaunda Miles, Director of Public Relations, 412-471-1578/Miles@TrustArts.org        
Diana Roth, Communications Manager, 412-471-8717/Roth@TrustArts.org
Images available: TrustArts.org/press
Search: TRAF 2014

 PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST ANNOUNCES
DYNAMIC PUBLIC ART INSTALLATIONS AND
WORLD-CLASS VISUAL ART EXHIBITIONS
AS PART OF DOLLAR BANK THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL

10 Days of Free Music and Art | June 6 – 15, 2014

Pittsburgh, PA—The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents engaging public art and vibrant gallery exhibitions as part of the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, June 6–15, 2014, throughout Point State Park, Gateway Center, and the Cultural District downtown. Several artworks explore themes of sustainability and environmental practices, and others feature elements created through crowd-sourcing and invite viewer participation. Prominent local artists as well as award-winning national artists are featured, presenting Pittsburgh-premiere and world-premiere exhibitions and installations.

"A special programming thread is the intersection of art and the environment. Whether it is the commentary of the built environment in Alexandre Arrechea’s monumental sculptures, 'No Limits,' or the gallery exhibitions and public art that reflect upon the natural environment, how we interact and impact the world around us is a core theme I hope audiences will explore this year," says Veronica Corpuz, Director of Festival Management and Special Projects, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.

For additional Festival information and for a complete schedule of events, please visit TrustArts.org/TRAF.

PUBLIC ART
O:NE:KA’
Supported by Colcom Foundation
Point State Park, Reflecting Pool at the Portal Bridge
People’s Clothing Archive and Library Initiative No 1: o:ne:ka’ by local artist Edith Abeyta is an installation exploring collectively, opportunity, and labor. Abeyta crowd-sourced this large-scale sculpture through donated t-shirts. These t-shirts are attached to a wooden framework—spanning the reflecting pool—that forms the word o:ne:ka’, the Seneca word for water. The sculpture takes into consideration the physical and historical properties of the site as well as the theme of sustainability. T-shirts were chosen as a medium in order to spur reflection on the potential impact of people recognizing clothing as a renewable resource.

BEFORE I DIE
Agnes R. Katz Plaza, 8th Street and Penn Avenue
Artist, designer, and urban planner Candy Chang created this global public art project inviting reflection on life and personal aspirations. Chang’s art prompts people to think about their secrets, wishes, and hopes—and then share them. A large, chalk wall is marked by columns of the phrase “Before I Die ____”, and the public is invited to complete the phase using chalk and their personal aspirations. Before I Die began on an abandoned house in New Orleans, LA, after Chang lost someone she loved. 475 Before I Die walls have been created in more than 30 languages and more than 65 countries, including Kazakhstan, Portugal, Japan, Denmark, Iraq, Argentina, and South Africa.

DIVERSION
Supported by Colcom Foundation
Point State Park, Overlook
This sculptural installation and activity explores the misplacement of compostable items into residential waste streams. Artist Rose Clancycomments on the percentage of compostable organic materials currently being placed into residential waste streams. It encourages viewers to consider their role in the redirection of these materials—from the path of entombment in a closed cell landfill, to the path of a renewable resource that supports the natural cycle of the food web. The public will have the opportunity to create “take-home” compostable sculptures and will be encouraged to recycle their sculpture by later burying it in their own backyard or compost bin.

NO LIMITS
Gateway Center, Downtown Pittsburgh
Cuban-born artist Alexandre Arrechea’s No Limits creates a dialogue between art and architecture. This series of ten monumental sculptures—four of which are shown in Pittsburgh— representing iconic New York City buildings plays on the idea of elastic architecture as a metaphor for the challenges and opportunities of shifting conditions and new realities. The buildings portrayed in No Limits are twisted, turned, and rotated, and are fused to spinning tops, resulting in the idea of a building in perpetual motion—a building that can continuously spin, fall, or rise again.

GALLERY EXHIBITIONS
THE CHINA EXPRESS
Supported by Lannan Foundation
Trust Arts Education Center, 3rd floor, 805-807 Liberty Avenue
Opening Reception | June 6 | 5–7 p.m.
Artist Talk | June 7 | 1–2 p.m.
Photojournalist Carlan Tapp presents a black and white photography exhibition that documents the people and places affected by coal shipping. This exhibition includes 40 digital prints illustrating Tapp’s 1,200 mile journey along the train’s route to from Wyoming to the Pacific Northwest proposed port in Bellingham, WA. The images detail a wide variety of subject matter, from open-pit coal mines in Wyoming to Pacific Northwest towns and Indian reservations.  As the United States continues to lower its dependency on coal, coal companies have turned to China. Four daily trains, each with more than 100 cars of coal, are being railed from Wyoming to British Columbia before being shipped to China. For every 500 miles that each train travels, 0.6 tons of coal dust is lost per car, which pollutes communities, ranches, and agriculture.


JURIED VISUAL ART EXHIBITION
Trust Arts Education Center, 4rd floor, 805-807 Liberty Avenue
The Juried Visual Art Exhibition showcases a selection of new work by some of the most talented members of Pittsburgh’s vibrant creative community. This year’s show features 59 works by 53 artists. Judges include John Carson, Regina and Martin Miller Professor and Head of the School of Art, Carnegie Mellon University; Rachel Delphia, The Alan G. and Jane A. Lehman Curator of Decorative Arts and Design, Carnegie Museum of Art; and Nicholas Chambers, The Milton Fine Curator of Art, The Warhol. Awards include “Best In Show” ($2,500), “Juror’s Choice” ($500 each), and “People’s Choice” ($500 and the opportunity to show in the 2015 Festival). The public has the opportunity to vote for the “People’s Choice” award on-site on their mobile devises.

PORTRAITS OF AIR
Supported by Heinz Endowments and the Breathe Project
709 Penn Gallery, 709 Penn Avenue
Detroit-based artist Susan Goethel Campbell’s crowd-sourced installation shows the results of nearly 100 air filters placed throughout the Pittsburgh region. Incorporating photography, sound, and the spun-glass air filters, she creates a visual document of the invisible element of air. Campbell’s aim for the installation is to bring awareness to the concept of air, hoping that people reflect and see themselves in the project.Portraits of Air is an ongoing, unscientific project that focuses on the movement and quality of air around the world. The project began in 2009 with the distribution of 24 8 × 10 in., air filters to people in seven countries, including 14 locations within the U.S. Each participant in the project was asked to place the filter in a location of their choosing so it could pick up particulates in the atmosphere.

About the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival
The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, is a celebration of the arts in downtown Pittsburgh unlike any other in the nation. Each of its world-class, multi-disciplinary performing and visual arts attractions is free to attend and open to the public. The Festival begins on the first Friday in June and takes place at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s famed three rivers in Point State Park, throughout picturesque Gateway Center, and in the city’s world-renowned Cultural District. For more information, visit TrustArts.org/TRAF.

About The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has overseen one of Pittsburgh’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. The District is one of the country’s largest land masses “curated” by a single nonprofit arts organization. A major catalytic force in the city, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity. Using the arts as an economic catalyst, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has holistically created a world-renowned Cultural District that is revitalizing the city, improving the regional economy and enhancing Pittsburgh’s quality of life. Thanks to the support of foundations, corporations, government agencies and thousands of private citizens, the Cultural Trust stands as a national model of urban redevelopment through the arts. For more information, visit TrustArts.org.

Follow us on Twitter @CulturalTrust, and like us on Facebook.

###

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

Best of Horizons Documentary on WQED

BEST OF HORIZONS DOCUMENTARY TO LOOK AT HIGHLIGHTS FROM LOCAL SERIES BROADCAST FOR MORE THAN 45 YEARS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 12, 2014

CONTACT:
George Hazimanolis
412-622-1366
ghazimanolis@wqed.org

BEST OF HORIZONS
DOCUMENTARY TO LOOK AT HIGHLIGHTS FROM
LOCAL SERIES BROADCAST FOR MORE THAN 45 YEARS

PITTSBURGH—In 1968, “the times they were a’changin.” Richard Nixon was elected the 37th President of the United States; peace-activist and humanitarian Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated; and a new television series (taped at WQED in Pittsburgh) focused on the social and emotional wellness of children called Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood premiered nationwide.

Another program began broadcasting from WQED Studios in 1968. Called Black Horizons, this weekly series was created to focus on the arts, culture, and concerns of the local African American community, and became the longest-running minority affairs program on television. Forty years later, the program was reimagined as Horizons to include the various racial and ethnic groups that now inhabit Pittsburgh and the surrounding communities.

On Thursday, May 15 at 8 p.m. a new documentary called Best of Horizons will premiere on WQED-TV.
Host Chris Moore will present a look back at some of the stories that defined the series, and the diverse people who make Pittsburgh their home. Viewers will learn about Bhangra, an energetic mix of Indian dance, hip-hop and gorgeous costumes from QED Cooks producer and host Chris Fennimore when he visits the Turkish Cultural Center in Dormont. Also featured will be the collection of thousands of photographs taken by Teenie Harris housed at The Carnegie Museum of Art & Natural History.

WQED changes lives by creating and sharing outstanding public media that educates, entertains, and inspires. It is the parent company of WQED-TV (PBS); WQED: The Neighborhood Channel; WQED: The Create Channel; WQED Showcase; Classical WQED-FM 89.3/Pittsburgh; Classical WQEJ-FM 89.7/Johnstown; the Pittsburgh Concert Channel at WQED-HD2 (89.3-2FM) and online at www.wqed.org/fm; local and national television and radio productions; WQED Interactive (www.wqed.org) and iQ: smartmedia, WQED’s Educational initiative (www.wqed.org/edu).

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

No Limits Public Art Installation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Jessica Warchall, Visual Arts Publicist, 847-477-8714/Warchall@TrustArts.org
Shaunda Miles, Director of Public Relations, 412-471-1578/Miles@TrustArts.org        
Diana Roth, Communications Manager, 412-471-8717/Roth@TrustArts.org
Images available: TrustArts.org/press
Search: TRAF 2014


PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST ANNOUNCES
ALEXANDRE ARRECHEA: NO LIMITS
A PUBLIC ART INSTALLATION OF THE
DOLLAR BANK THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL
10 Days of Free Music and Art | June 6 – 15, 2014

Pittsburgh, PA—The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents the monumental sculptural installation No Limits by Cuban-born artist Alexandre Arrechea as part of the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival public art program. Four nearly 20-foot-tall sculptures—originally part of a series installed along New York City’s Park Avenue—will be displayed throughout downtown Pittsburgh’s Gateway Center from June 6–September 7, 2014.

Arrechea’s No Limits is series of ten large-scale sculptures representing iconic New York City buildings that plays on the idea of elastic architecture as a metaphor for the challenges and opportunities of shifting conditions and new realities. Through his art, Arrechea entices the viewer to explore his or her own role in such concepts as control, power, and surveillance.

The buildings portrayed in No Limits are twisted, turned, and rotated, and are fused to spinning tops, or tompos (toy tops popular in Latin America), resulting in the idea of a building in perpetual motion—a building that can continuously spin, fall, or rise again.


“With this installation, I have created a set of works that confront dynamism vs. static, the whole vs. the fragmented, control vs. chaos, utopia vs. reality,” says artist Alexandre Arrechea. “The series provides a new point of access from which to understand the dialog between art and architecture and how this relationship can evolve and open new doors.”

“We are thrilled to present a selection of sculptures form Alexandre Arrechea’s No Limits series,” says Veronica Corpuz, Director of Festival Management and Special Projects, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. “We hope that festivalgoers will see the dynamic sculptures in relation to their own city and relate the artworks to their surroundings.”

Alexandre Arrechea (born Trinidad, Cuba, 1970) graduated from Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) in Havana, Cuba, in 1994. He was a founding member of the collective Los Carpinteros (1991–2003). As a solo artist, Arrechea represented his homeland in the first ever Cuban Pavilion at the Venice Biennale (2011), as well as the 11th Havana Biennial (2012). Arrechea was the spring 2011 BAMbill cover artist as well as featured in “Hola Havana” for the Brooklyn Academy of Music as part of ¡Si Cuba! Festival (2011). A key source for this work is the prominence of surveillance systems and the accompanying obsession with control during our time. Works such as the Garden of Mistrust(2003–2005) and Perpetual Free Entrance (2006) deal with troubles of accessibility or approach to artwork. An installation he created for the 2009 Havana Biennial consisted of a steel house divided into eleven sections, the separation between walls changing daily, depending of the rise or fall of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. In March 2010, Arrechea was chosen to create a public art program in New York City’s Times Square. The video work Black Sun (2009) was a 3-D animated wrecking ball that continuously hit the NASDAQ Billboard. Arrechea’s work is ultimately a provocative exercise of criticisms to the known structures of power in our time.

About the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival

The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, is a celebration of the arts in downtown Pittsburgh unlike any other in the nation. Each of its world-class, multi-disciplinary performing and visual arts attractions is free to attend and open to the public. The Festival begins on the first Friday in June and takes place at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s famed three rivers in Point State Park, throughout picturesque Gateway Center, and in the city’s world-renowned Cultural District. For more information, visit TrustArts.org/TRAF.

About The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has overseen one of Pittsburgh’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. The District is one of the country’s largest land masses “curated” by a single nonprofit arts organization. A major catalytic force in the city, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity. Using the arts as an economic catalyst, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has holistically created a world-renowned Cultural District that is revitalizing the city, improving the regional economy and enhancing Pittsburgh’s quality of life. Thanks to the support of foundations, corporations, government agencies and thousands of private citizens, the Cultural Trust stands as a national model of urban redevelopment through the arts. For more information, visit TrustArts.org.

Follow us on Twitter @CulturalTrust, and like us on Facebook.
###
Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

WQED Awarded Prestigious Gabriel Award

CATHOLIC ACADEMY HONORS WQED WITH PRESTIGIOUS GABRIEL AWARD
Documentary tells story of Pittsburgh artist Elizabeth Black during WWII


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
 May 15, 2014

CONTACT:
 George Hazimanolis
 412-622-1366
ghazimanolis@wqed.org

CATHOLIC ACADEMY HONORS WQED WITH PRESTIGIOUS GABRIEL AWARD
Documentary tells story of Pittsburgh artist Elizabeth Black during WWII

PITTSBURGH – For the third time, a documentary written and produced by WQED’s David Solomon with photography and editing by Paul Ruggieri has been recognized with a national Gabriel Award.

 Solomon will accept the 2014 Gabriel Award for Portraits for the Homefront: The Story of Elizabeth Black in Charlotte, North Carolina on June 19. Presented by the Catholic Academy, The Gabriel is presented to films and programs throughout North America that uplift the human spirit by focusing on people who foster community, creativity, tolerance, justice and compassion.

 The WQED documentary chronicled the life of Miss Black who abandoned a promising Pittsburgh art career to travel through Europe during World War II sketching soldiers, sailors and airmen in field camps. She did more than 1,000 portraits, which were sent home to worried parents, wives and other family members in the United States.

“Portraits” was narrated by WQED’s Michael Bartley, who along with Solomon, Ruggieri, Pierina Morelli and Iris Samson won the 2006 Gabriel for From Pittsburgh to Poland: Lessons of the Holocaust. In 2010, Solomon and Ruggieri received the Gabriel for Losing Lambert: A Journey Through Survival & Hope, a film about local parents who lost children to suicide.

 Solomon attends Saint Maurice Parish in Forest Hills. Ruggieri is a member of the Church of Saint Paul in Greensburg. Bartley is a member of Saint Rosalia in Greenfield.

Portraits for the Homefront: The Story of Elizabeth Black will encore Thursday, May 22 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, May 25 at 3 p.m. on WQED-TV and is also available to watch online at wqed.org/elizabethblack.  

Elizabeth Black’s Legacy

In 2010, John Black and his wife Kay of Germantown, Tennessee received an unexpected surprise: his mother’s footlocker filled with the 100 photographs of her sketches, images of Miss Black standing before the easel as fascinated soldiers watched, scrap books, news clippings and other memorabilia. The trunk had been stored, unexamined, for decades in a family member’s garage in California. In 2011, John Black connected with WQED executive producer David Solomon, who began work on the documentary and a companion interactive outreach project.

 Portraits for the Homefront: The Story of Elizabeth Black explores Miss Black’s lost art career, features interviews with elderly veterans who encountered the artist on the battlefield, and captures memorable scenes of amazed and appreciative families finally receiving portraits that never arrived. Through social media, a separate interactive component of the project, Finding Elizabeth’s Soldiers is working to make sure the 100 portraits in the Black collection reach the families that might not have them. An online gallery of the drawings can be viewed at www.wqed.org/elizabethblack. As the veterans’ images are identified and connected with families, WQED will mark the sketches accordingly on the site.

Elizabeth Black’s Art Career

Elizabeth Black was an up-and-coming artist in 1930s Pittsburgh. After recognition at Carrick and Peabody high schools, Miss Black won a scholarship to the city’s Ad-Art Studio School, took classes at Carnegie Tech and studied at the prestigious Art Students League of New York. Prominent Pittsburgh families including the Mellons, Craigs and Shaws commissioned her work for portraits of children and other family members.

 Her crowning achievement in Pittsburgh was the selection of Miss Black in 1940 to paint 25 larger than life portraits of literary greats such as Longfellow, Dickinson, Thoreau and others. The portraits were permanently mounted at the Carnegie Library on the city’s North Side until they disappeared during a late 1960s renovation.

Elizabeth Black’s Service

At the height of World War II, Miss Black joined the American Red Cross and was assigned to the Clubmobile division. The retrofitted buses and trucks, staffed and driven by women, traveled to field camps throughout Europe providing donuts, coffee and a smiling face to war-weary troops. Hoping to be more than a hostess and utilize her talent Miss Black proposed a unique project to sketch soldiers and send the portraits to worried families in the United States. The American Red Cross accepted the plan, giving Miss Black special assignment status.

 For nearly two years Miss Black sketched her way across Europe, choosing her subjects through a lottery and completing as many as a dozen portraits a day. Every soldier, sailor and airman signed their sketches, often including endearments to loved ones back home. They also autographed Miss Black’s journal, a fascinating collection of appreciative messages, poems and well wishes to the talented and charming Pittsburgh artist. Miss Black completed more than 1,000 sketches. The originals were sent to wives, mothers and other family members throughout the United States. At some point, Miss Black took quality photographs of about 100 sketches to keep a record of her work.

 In Cherbourg, France, Miss Black met a naval commander from Tennessee who ironically shared her last name. She married Julian Black at the American Cathedral in Paris in 1945. After the war, the couple eventually settled in Waynesboro, Virginia. With her art career nearly dormant, Mrs. Black devoted her time to raising sons George and John while helping her husband start a business. After Julian Black’s passing and with her sons now grown, Mrs. Black moved to Berkeley, California and later Portland, Oregon. She resumed portrait work to a far lesser extent than her successful Pittsburgh years. In 1983, Elizabeth Black had a heart attack and died at 71.

WQED changes lives by creating and sharing outstanding public media that educates, entertains, and inspires. It is the parent company of WQED-TV (PBS); WQED: The Neighborhood Channel; WQED: The Create Channel; WQED Showcase; Classical WQED-FM 89.3/Pittsburgh; Classical WQEJ-FM 89.7/Johnstown; the Pittsburgh Concert Channel at WQED-HD2 (89.3-2FM) and online at www.wqed.org/fm; local and national television and radio productions; WQED Interactive (www.wqed.org) and iQ: smartmedia, WQED’s Educational initiative (www.wqed.org/edu).

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

Festival Programming for TRAF Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Shaunda Miles – Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, 412-471-1578 / Miles@TrustArts.org
Diana Roth – Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, 412-471-1578 / Roth@TrustArts.org
Jessica Warchall – Visual Arts Publicist, 847-477-8714 (cell) / Warchall@TrustArts.org
Images available at: http://TrustArts.org/press
Search name: 2014 TRAF
For More Information: TrustArts.org/TRAF


PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST ANNOUNCES
FULL COMPLEMENT OF FESTIVAL PROGRAMMING FOR
55TH ANNUAL DOLLAR BANK THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL
POINT STATE PARK | CULTURAL DISTRICT | GATEWAY CENTER
10 DAYS OF FREE music + art | JUNE 6 – 15, 2014

Pittsburgh, PA—The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust announces the full complement of programming scheduled to be presented at the 55th annual Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. The 10-day celebration of the arts in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is unlike any other in the nation. The world-class, multi-disciplinary festival is free to attend and is open to the public. Attracting over 400,000 visitors annually, the Festival begins on the first Friday in June and takes place at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s famed three rivers in Point State Park, throughout picturesque Gateway Center, and in the city’s world-renowned Cultural District.

“Just over $165 million dollars in household income is generated by the arts and culture throughout the Allegheny and neighboring counties,” shared J. Kevin McMahon, President & CEO of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.  “This is just one of many economic indicators that evidence the power of art has to transform our communities.  The Trust’s free festivals will welcome a half million people between May and December of this year alone.  Art truly does make a difference in the holistic development of our city and is vital to its sustainability.”

Joseph B. Smith, Senior Vice President Marketing for Dollar Bank added, “Our desire to provide the people of this region with a free day of music began twenty years ago when we had our first Dollar Bank Jamboree. Today, this vision continues providing free music and programming for 10 days on the Dollar Bank Stage and throughout the Cultural District and Gateway Center.  It is our hope that our sponsorship provides the means to keep programming broad, spanning across sectors and disciplines, thereby reflecting and encouraging diversity within our city and region.”

This year’s major theme, the intersection of the festival’s core values, is aesthetic creativity and environmental sustainability.  From Diversion, supported by the Colcom Foundation, and the interactive tents in the Giant Eagle Creativity Zone, to the portal bridge and art galleries, these installations and exhibitions are aimed to evoke a sense of wonder, responsibility and renewed awareness of how our actions and choices affect our world and the people around us.

The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival is made possible by the generous support of Peoples Natural Gas, Giant Eagle, ChoosePAWind, Bessie F. Anathan Charitable Trust of the Pittsburgh Foundation, Buhl Foundation, Calgon Carbon Corporation, Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, Colcom Foundation, The Fine Foundation, The Grable Foundation, The Heinz Endowments, Henry Hillman Foundation, Lannan Foundation, Laurel Foundation, The Pittsburgh Foundation, and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

PERFORMING ARTS

Pittsburgh Premieres

Squonk | Pnuematica
Squonk’s new outdoor work, “Pneumatica,” is made of air, powered by air, and about air. The performances will awaken social connections into joyful wind-powered emergent air spectacles. It will push physics and civic interdependency into tangibility, with wind powered turbines, tentacles, and a whirl of inflatables.  Squonk has created seven new works over 18 years with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, which have toured to Europe, Asia, Broadway, and off-Broadway. This successful history includes the premiere of the truck-mounted Squonk Roadshow 2012 that has gone on to 14 cities in 10 states for 100 shows.  The group just returned from a busy winter playing Manhattan, where The New York Times called them a “multi-media troupe of infinite jest” from Pittsburgh with “images of strange and startling beauty...”

Bricolage | OJO presented by Pittsburgh Foundation
OJO is a world-premiere immersive theater experience produced by Pittsburgh's own Bricolage, whose mission is to immerse artists and audiences in adventurous theatrical experiences that foster connections and alter perceptions. The experience requires registering for a free voucher at TrustArts.org/OJO in advance of your attendance and while capacity remains, first-come first-served.

Complaints n’at Choir
Christiane D, a multimedia-artist with a long standing reputation in the Pittsburgh arts scene, is charged with leading the creation of Pittsburgh’s Inaugural Complaint Choir, as part of the international project, Complaint Choirs of the World.  For a limited time only, the complaints of our fair residents will be gathered and constructed into a song for the choir, for all to sing.

Dance
Dance performances will take place in the Peirce Studio, located at 805 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.  Each performance will have two show times, one at 2pm and one at 5pm.  Performance times vary between 45 minutes and 60 minutes.

Boomerang | June 7
Boomerang is a fearlessly physical, poetically nuanced dance and performance project comprised of Kora Radella, Matty Davis, and Adrian Galvin. Recognizing the body as an evolving repository for both physical and psychological life, Boomerang sifts through and siphons from its rich, eclectic histories. The foundation of both Davis and Galvin as movers, arise from aggressive rollerblading, soccer, snowboarding, tennis, hockey, ultimate Frisbee, and long-distance running.  They have been referred to as the “punk Mozarts of dance.”

Shana Simmons Dance and The Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra | June 8
We Sing the Body Eclectic is a new work by collaborators Shana Simmons Dance and The Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra –their fourth collaboration in the past two years. Featuring four dancers and fourteen musicians, the piece takes the form of a long transition from sparseness to density, calm to agitation. Using orchestral and electronic instruments, words, and movement, the audience will question its own perception of time.

Alba Flamenca | June 14
Alba Flamenca is an example of a mix of cultures that have come together to celebrate and perform Flamenco.  The performers are devoted to the art that is Flamenco and have intention to stay as traditional as possible, in addition to keeping true to artistic beliefs and telling personal stories using their bodies and minds.

Reed Dance | June 15
Take a journey with Reed Dance as the ensemble celebrates the music of the great Stevie Wonder. Reed Dance will collaborate with local and national dance, music, spoken word artists and students to present Suite Stevie. These young artists will showcase the genius and timeless music of the man himself.

PUBLIC ART HIGHLIGHTS

Before I Die | Artist: Candy Chang
“One of the most creative community projects ever.”—The Atlantic
Artist, designer, and urban planner Candy Chang creates art that prompts people to think about their secrets, wishes and hopes and then share them. Before I Die is a global art project that invites people to reflect on their lives and share their personal aspirations in public space.

No Limits | Artist: Alexandre Arrechea
Cuban-born artist Alexandre Arrechea’s No Limits, a series of ten sculptures creatively representing iconic New York City buildings and architecture, was installed on New York City's Park Avenue in the spring of 2013, presented by Magnan Metz Gallery in conjunction with NYC Parks and the Fund for Park Avenue Sculpture Committee.  Four of the ten sculptures, nearly 20 feet in height each, are now located throughout Gateway Center as a public art feature of the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival.

People's Clothing Archive and Library Initiative No 1: o:ne:ka' | Artist: Edith Abeyta
Supported by Colcom Foundation
What if we recognized clothing as a renewable resource? People’s Clothing Archive and Library Initiative No 1: o:ne:ka' is a large-scale sculpture fabricated from donated t-shirts attached to a wooden framework that formst he word, o:ne:ka'— the Seneca word for water. The sculpture takes into consideration the physical and historical properties of the site as well as the themes of the Festival.

VISUAL ART HIGHLIGHTS

Juried Visual Art Exhibition (JVAE)
The annual Juried Visual Art Exhibition, held at 805-807 Liberty Avenue in the Trust Arts Education Center (James E. Rohr Building) features Pittsburgh’s best new visual art.  Showcasing a selection of new work by some of the most talented members of Pittsburgh’s vibrant creative community, the exhibition is one of the most-anticipated visual arts attractions at the Festival.  This year’s show features 59 works by 53 artists. Exhibition attendees can join the panel of jurors in awarding the best work in the JVAE. After experiencing the show, attendees can vote on-site on mobile devices or with the JVAE staff at the 4th floor entrance lobby.  Selected works may be offered for sale at artists’ discretion.  Rewards include Best in Show, Juror’s Choice and the People’s Choice Award.  This year’s distinguished jurors include John Carson, Regina and Marlin Miller Professor and Head of the School of Art at Carnegie Mellon University;  Rachel Delphia, The Alan G. and Jane A. Lehman Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at Carnegie Museum of Art; and Nicholas Chambers, The Milton Fine Curator of Art at the warhol.

The China Express | Artist: Carlan Tapp
Presented by Lannan Foundation
Photojournalist Carlan Tapp showcases The China Express, a black and white photography exhibition that documents the people and places affected by coal shipping.  The exhibition includes 40 digital images Tapp took while traveling the 1,200 mile train route, including everything from the open-pit coal mines in Wyoming to Pacific Northwest towns and Indian reservations. In some areas, coal mining has depleted wells and caused streams and natural waterways to dry up. The China Express is informative and is presented unobtrusively in the form of brief captions that serve as titles for each image.

Portraits of Air | Artist: Susan Goethel Campbell
Detroit-based artist Susan Goethel Campbell crowd-sourced this installation of more than 100 air filters distributed throughout the Pittsburgh region. Incorporating photography and mixed media, she creates a visual document of the invisible element of air.

Other visual art exhibitions will be on display at galleries and open spaces throughout the Cultural District, including Wood Street Galleries, 707Penn Gallery, 709 Penn Gallery, Tito Way, Backstage Bar at Theater Square and the Trust Arts Education Center.

GIANT EAGLE CREATIVITY ZONE
Artist demonstrations and hands-on activities are available annually at the Festival. Educational shows for all ages are available, ranging from culturally-diverse music performances to story-telling to collaborative painting projects. This year’s Giant Eagle Creativity Zone is being enhanced by several special projects, including Diversion, an installation and activity exploring misplacement of compostables into residential waste streams by Rose Clancy and presented by Colcom Foundation; Chutz-Pow! Superheroes of the Holocaust presented by the Holocaust Center and Toonseum and Reuse-a-Palooza! a hands-on, open-ended art activities using reclaimed materials presented by Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse.

The Miniature Marina by the Laurel Foundation will return to the Artist Market providing the popular children’s model sailboat activity. Other organizations participating in the expanded Giant Eagle Creativity Zone include Union Project, The Sprout Fund, Calligraphy Guild of Pittsburgh, Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, Gateway to the Arts, Pittsburgh Glass Center, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, ZooBeats, Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Society of Artists, Turners Anonymous, MGR Youth Empowerment, Sweetwater Center for the Arts, iNCLUDE: Pittsburgh, and WQED.

The Creativity Stage in the Giant Eagle Creativity Zone will host WYEP’s Reimagination Showcase, Yemaya Pittsburgh, Hope Academy Teen Theater Company, WQED’s Musical Kids, Alastair Moock, Pittsburgh Puppet Works, iQ Kids Radio’s Sand and Surf Dance Party and Pittsburgh Musical Theater Extreme Teen Broadway featuring selections from popular musicals such as SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL and ALICE IN WONDERLAND.  Pittsburgh Filmmakers will host eight (8) art-focused films in the Harris Theaterincluding Cutie and the Boxer, a series of Pride Week short films, Open City of Amereida and Indie Game: the Movie–a Sundance award-winner looking at indie video game developers.

ARTIST MARKET PRESENTED BY PEOPLES NATURAL GAS
The 2014 Artist Market will feature a record 338 artists over 18 different mediums. Artists will be traveling to Pittsburgh from 30 states.  In addition to the professional Artists in the Artist Market, Peoples Natural Gas will provide scholarship opportunities to eight Emerging Artists who will be presenting at a professional show for the first time.

Ranked among the Top 40 shows in the nation by Sunshine Artist Magazine, the Artist Market at Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival takes place throughout Point State Park and Gateway Center daily, as well as Penn Avenue Extension on weekends. The Artist Market is a cornerstone of the Festival and provides the public with an opportunity to purchase work directly from artists specializing in an array of media including ceramics, computer graphics and digital art, jewelry, fiber, glass, leather, metal, mixed media, painting, photography, sculpture, woodworking and more.  New artists appear in the Artists Market throughout the 10 days, making for a new and unique experience each day.

For information regarding the 2014 Music Headliners, visit TrustArts.org/Press.

For up to date information and a full schedule (including locations, dates and times) for the festival, visit www.TrustArts.org/TRAF.

ABOUT THE DOLLAR BANK THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL
The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a celebration of the arts in downtown Pittsburgh unlike any other in the nation. Each of its world-class, multi-disciplinary performing and visual arts attractions is free to attend and open to the public! The Festival begins on the first Friday in June and takes place at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s famed three rivers in Point State Park, throughout picturesque Gateway Center, and in the city’s world-renowned Cultural District.

ABOUT THE PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has overseen one of Pittsburgh’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. The District is one of the country’s largest land masses “curated” by a single nonprofit arts organization. A major catalytic force in the city, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity. Using the arts as an economic catalyst, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has holistically created a world-renowned Cultural District that is revitalizing the city, improving the regional economy and enhancing Pittsburgh’s quality of life. Thanks to the support of foundations, corporations, government agencies and thousands of private citizens, the Trust stands as a national model of urban redevelopment through the arts.
Follow us on Twitter @CulturalTrust, and like us on Facebook.
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Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh

CLO Announces Gene Kelly Award Nominees

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michael Cerchiaro
412-281-3973 ext. 101
mcerchiaro@pittsburghCLO.org


Pittsburgh CLO Announces Nominees for
the 2014 Gene Kelly Awards

Pittsburgh, PA • May 7, 2014– Pittsburgh CLO and the University of Pittsburgh are proud to announce the nominees for the Gene Kelly Awards for Excellence in High School Musical Theater. The awards show will take place on Saturday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the Benedum Center in downtown Pittsburgh.

Over the past three months, a panel of 30 judges have attended the performances by the following 29 Allegheny County high schools: Avonworth, Baldwin, Bishop Canevin, Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic, Central Catholic, Chartiers Valley, Elizabeth Forward, Hampton Township, Keystone Oaks, McKeesport, North Hills, Northgate, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Penn Hills, Pine-Richland, Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy, Pittsburgh Brashear, Pittsburgh CAPA, Pittsburgh Perry, Plum, Quaker Valley, Riverview, Shady Side Academy, Springdale, St. Joseph, West Allegheny, West Mifflin, Winchester Thurston and Woodland Hills.

The judging panel was comprised of performing arts educators, arts administrators, entertainment professionals and performers. On May 2 these judges met and reviewed highlights from each high school performance. The scoring was then tabulated by Deloitte LLP.

The Nominees for the 2014 Gene Kelly Awards are:

Best Scenic Design
 
Budget Level I
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart The Wiz
Pittsburgh Perry                 Seussical
St. Joseph                                 Shrek, the Musical
 
Budget Level II
Central Catholic                Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                Young Frankenstein
Riverview                          Fiddler on the Roof
 
Budget Level III
Pine-Richland                         Thoroughly Modern Millie
West Allegheny                         Catch Me If You Can
Woodland Hills                         Sweeney Todd

Best Costume Design
 
Budget Level I
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart The Wiz
Quaker Valley                          Pirates of Penzance
St. Joseph                            Shrek, the Musical
 
Budget Level II
Bishop Canevin                         The Drowsy Chaperone
Central Catholic                 Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                 Young Frankenstein
 
Budget Level III
Baldwin                                Shrek, the Musical
Pine-Richland                        Thoroughly Modern Millie
Woodland Hills                   Sweeney Todd

Best Lighting Design

 
Budget Level I
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart The Wiz
Pittsburgh CAPA                  Footloose
St. Joseph                                 Shrek, the Musical
 
Budget Level II
Central Catholic                   Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                   Young Frankenstein
Riverview                                   Fiddler on the Roof
 
Budget Level III
Avonworth                         Man of La Mancha
West Allegheny                         Catch Me If You Can
Woodland Hills                         Sweeney Todd

Best All-Student Orchestra

Baldwin                                 Shrek, the Musical
Hampton                                 Young Frankenstein
North Hills                          42nd Street
Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy The Wiz
Pittsburgh CAPA                Footloose
West Mifflin                         Bye Bye Birdie

Best Supporting Actor
 
Rush Hodgin Pine-Richland  Thoroughly Modern Millie “Trevor Graydon III”
Noah Baynes Lheureau Bishop Canevin The Drowsy Chaperone “Robert Martin”
Drew Praskovich Pittsburgh CAPA Footloose “Willard Hewitt”
Julius Ralph Penn Hills The Wiz “The Wizard”
Quintin Reynolds CW North Catholic Children of Eden “Cain/Japeth”
Michael Zak Central Catholic Spamalot “Patsy”

Best Supporting Actress
 
Leah Prestogeorge Woodland Hills Sweeney Todd “Joanna Barker”
Amanda Rulis Hampton Young Frankenstein “Inga”
Jillian Schmidt Pine-Richland Thoroughly Modern Millie “Muzzy Van Hossmere”
Mara Singleton Plum My Favorite Year “KC Downing”
Ashley Sitarik Our Lady of the Sacred Heart The Wiz “Addaperle”
Brook Taylor Woodland Hills Sweeney Todd “Beggar Woman/Lucy Barker”

Best Ensemble

Central Catholic                             Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                             Young Frankenstein
Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy      The Wiz
Quaker Valley                                      Pirates of Penzance
St. Joseph                                              Shrek, the Musical
West Allegheny                                       Catch Me If You Can

Best Crew/Technical Execution

Baldwin                                               Shrek, the Musical
Hampton                                               Young Frankenstein
Pine-Richland                                        Thoroughly Modern Millie
Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy         The Wiz
Riverview                                          Fiddler on the Roof
Woodland Hills                                         Sweeney Todd

Best Choreography

Central Catholic                             Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                            Young Frankenstein
Pine-Richland                                    Thoroughly Modern Millie
Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy     The Wiz
Pittsburgh CAPA                            Footloose
West Allegheny                                    Catch Me If You Can

Best Direction

Central Catholic                                  Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                                 Young Frankenstein
Pine-Richland                                         Thoroughly Modern Millie
Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy          The Wiz
Quaker Valley                                          Pirates of Penzance
St. Joseph                                                  Shrek, the Musical

Best Actor
 
Ryan Borgo West Allegheny Catch Me If You Can “Frank Abignale, Jr.”
Connor Cook Plum My Favorite Year “Benjy Stone”
Tom Curry West Allegheny Catch Me If You Can “Carl Hanratty”
Peter Heres Quaker Valley Pirates of Penzance “Pirate King”
Adam Rayan Penn Hills The Wiz “Tinman”
Nathanial Yost Central Catholic Monty Python’s Spamalot “King Arthur”

Best Actress
 
Abby Dionise Pine-Richland Thoroughly Modern Millie “Miss Dorothy Brown”
Alexandra Illescas Pittsburgh CAPA Footloose “Rusty”
Alexis Loiselle Pine-Richland Thoroughly Modern Millie “Millie Dillmount”
Mallory Milberger St. Joseph Shrek, the Musical “Princess Fiona”
Marnie Quick Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy The Wiz “Tinman”
Savannah Wiggins Penn Hills The Wiz “Dorothy”

Best Musical
 
Budget Level I

Pittsburgh Barack Obama Academy               The Wiz
Quaker Valley                                                Pirates of Penzance
St. Joseph                                                  Shrek, the Musical
 
Budget Level II

Bishop Canevin                                                  The Drowsy Chaperone
Central Catholic                                          Monty Python’s Spamalot
Hampton                                                          Young Frankenstein
 
Budget Level III

Penn Hills                                                        The Wiz
Pine-Richland                                                Thoroughly Modern Millie
West Allegheny                                                 Catch Me If You Can

The nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress will be competing for the opportunity to represent Pittsburgh CLO’s Gene Kelly Awards in the sixth-annual National High School Musical Theater Awards in New York City on Monday, June 30. For more information on the National High School Musical Theater Awards, please visit www.nhsmta.com.

In addition to the more than 20 Kelly Awards presented at the event, several cash and university scholarships will be awarded.  These scholarships are made possible through the generous donations of Paul Block, Virginia S. Nicklas, the CLO Ambassadors, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and participating colleges. Winners will be announced at the ceremony on May 24.  More information is available at pittsburghCLO.org.

The Gene Kelly Awards are co-presented by the University of Pittsburgh with additional support provided by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, PNC Bank, Virginia S. Nicklas and the CLO Ambassadors. Deloitte Consulting, LLP is the official auditor for the Gene Kelly Awards.

Pittsburgh CLO is also pleased to announce that Gene Kelly’s widow, Patricia Ward Kelly, will once again participate in the awards show.
What:              24th Annual Gene Kelly Awards
Where:             Benedum Center for the Performing Arts
When:              Saturday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets:            On sale May 13.  Call 412-456-6666
# # #
Since 1946, the Pittsburgh CLO has been the driving force behind live musical theater in Pittsburgh and the entire Southwestern Pennsylvania region. Under the direction of Van Kaplan since 1997, this not-for-profit arts organization appreciates the support of nearly 200,000 patrons each year and produces a subscription series, educational programs, national tours and develops and invests in new works, including 18 Broadway shows (24 Tony Awards®) featuring the current productions of Cinderella, Kinky Boots and Matilda. Its dedication to the musical theater art form extends to include such programs as the CLO Academy, the CLO Mini Stars, the Gene Kelly Awards, the Richard Rodgers Award the National High School Musical Theater Awards, the Construction Center for the Arts

Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh