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My Dear Friends, |
December 30, 2013 |
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Warm holiday greetings from the Actors Theatre Workshop! As we enjoy this precious time with our friends and loved ones, we are so very happy to share with you some of the important milestones we've achieved at your theatre and community center during the last year. During a time of great challenges all across our land, ATW worked with a committed spirit as we ran our innovative and successful programs and productions. Thank you so much for your support and involvement, which allowed us to expand our education program for homeless children, open ATW's stage to even more individuals expressing their original ideas in our Open Mic Night of Theatre, Song, Ideas and Current Events, and share with our audience the unique journey of developing a play in our Creative Process Play Development Workshop. |
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I hope that you will support our work to create significant and lasting change in the lives of the adults and children we serve in New York City and around the world. |
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Unleashing our potential during a challenging time
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| Today, many individuals and families are struggling with the broad economic and social changes taking place in our land. As we strive to overcome our challenges and fulfill our dreams for ourselves and our families, we often experience a multiplicity of complex emotions and thoughts. | | ||||
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During 2013, ATW taught thousands of children and adults new creative ways to address their challenges. In our classes and programs we support individuals to be curious about the world around them. Our original techniques to develop the imagination unleash individuals' inspiration and abilities - - and invariably we discover that with curiosity, hope, and faith, we have everything we need within our grasp.
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Our Innovative Programs for the Community
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. . . I'm proud to say that our after-school program for homeless children, The Builders of the New World, is growing and expanding to serve even more children and their families that live in temporary housing. We hope you will join us in March 2014 for our upcoming BNW session, building on the incredibly successful program that we completed this past spring 2013. The theme of our Spring 2013 program was building a diverse education. The children were very excited to explore the idea of getting a liberal arts education and developing a trade. Learning how to do things with your hands - - whether it's cooking a meal or fixing a stove - - encourages individuals to understand that life is a process. This expanded understanding of their education gave the children tremendous confidence and a bigger vision of how to prepare themselves for the future. Please visit our July newsletter to read the children's expressions and plans for their future success coming from this powerful vision of education and opportunity.
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. . . Be a part of our Wednesday night Creative Process Play Development Workshop, in which we put new and classic plays on their feet and invite our audience to witness the power of the creative process unfold before their eyes. Typically when audiences go to the theatre, they see a fully developed, complete work of art. We initiated this unique series at ATW so that our audience could see the many complex steps that go into developing a play as the director works with the ensemble, from the beginning process of choosing the play to creating the end product. In today's instantaneous consumer society, we don't always think about how the products and services that we use each day are made. When individuals understand the steps of a process and how ideas are brought to completion, it makes them feel secure. ATW's play reading series reveals the steps that go into creating something: not only the plays we are developing, but the many things individuals do in our daily lives, whether we're organizing our offices or grocery shopping. Understanding process gives us a greater feeling of control, allows us to put our dreams into action, and enhances our everyday lives. |
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. . . Open Mic Night of Theatre, Song, Ideas and Current Events ATW created this program to give diverse members of our community a platform on which to share their talents and express their insights and vision for their neighborhoods, country, and the world. Powerful voices and utterances exist within the consciousness of our country, and our constitutional right to free speech is one of our greatest privileges and most awesome responsibilities. The ideas that people express on our stage - - through song, poetry, drama and every day stories and insights - - represent an amalgamation of the many complex political, social and cultural ideas that exist in the world today. Since the Open Mic is a very relaxed, creative and heartfelt surrounding, presenters feel the courage to innovate and try out new concepts. In the process, they find nuggets of expression, idealism and vision that can become powerful tools in their repertoire and lift them up as individual artists and presenters. At the same time, the audience and all who partake in this event are inspired with a powerful feeling of unity and communal togetherness as we examine the landscape of where America is now and our hopes for the future. We hope you'll join us at our next Open Mic on Wednesday, January 29th - - and on the last Wednesday of every month in 2014! |
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The Local Hero Award
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We are also happy to add a new dynamic to our annual update, which is the very positive friendship we have developed with our landlord Mr. Shlomo Bakhash, President of the Kash Group. We nominated Mr. Bakhash to receive ART New York's prestigious Local Hero Award because of the great help he gave ATW and the time he took out of his very busy schedule during the long process of negotiating the new lease we signed last year. Mr. Bakhash has been very supportive of our mission and programs, and our connection has grown into a very close and productive relationship. | | ||||
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As we have come to know Mr. Bakhash, we have seen that he is a poetic, visionary entrepreneur. This inquisitive, curious individual looks out over the landscape and asks himself "how might I implement my vision to address the powerful changes and unfolding demands in America?" He has created gracious and beautiful environments in his buildings, and takes extra steps to create an ambiance that makes his tenants and guests feel appreciated and valued. This very compassionate individual has been a stalwart supporter of our work in the community, and we congratulate Mr. Shlomo Bakhash for the wonderful recognition of being awarded ART New York's 2013 Local Hero Award! |
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Support our vision of hope
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Our country is in the process of finding new ways to achieve success. Individuals are redefining themselves in order to unleash their hidden talents so they can address their needs. There is a feeling of hope as people discover new dimensions of themselves. With this new understanding, the pioneer spirit that created America is being awakened.
Our president and many of our leaders have emphasized education as the way to meet the challenges we face as a nation. At other times during our short history as a nation, our ancestors had to redefine their vision. They were very successful and that is why today America is the envy of the world. At The Actors Theatre Workshop, we have picked up the mantle of the national challenge to redefine ourselves and move ahead into the 21st century with hope.
For 23 years, The Actors Theatre Workshop has offered programs that teach, counsel and support individuals and uphold America's pioneering, can-do spirit. I ask you to join us and help us to continue this most profound and worthy venture. We are the troops on the front line - - but this effort is a part of all of us. We are all part of the essence of this new unfolding dream and direction.
So please join us. Be a part of this courageous vision of education and hope as we educate our children, re-educate many of our adults, and rededicate ourselves and join together so that we can all achieve our full and glorious potential. Your involvement will be greatly appreciated, strengthen our courage, sustain our institution, and allow us to continue our work.
Thank you and God bless you, your family and your loved ones. Know that we keep you in our thoughts at all times.
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Sincerely,
Thurman E. Scott
Artistic Director, Executive Producer and Founder |
Join Us!!
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