Thank you to the many people who have been blog contributors to, and readers of ArtsBlog over the years. ArtsBlog has long been a space where we uplifted stories from the field that demonstrated how the arts strengthen our communities socially, educationally, and economically; where trends and issues and controversies were called out; and advocacy tools were provided to help you make the case for more arts funding and favorable arts policies.

As part of Americans for the Arts’ recent Strategic Realignment Process, we were asked to evaluate our storytelling communications platforms and evolve the way we share content. As a result, we launched the Designing Our Destiny portal to explore new ways of telling stories and sharing information, one that is consistent with our longtime practice of, “No numbers without a story, and no stories without a number.”

As we put our energy into developing this platform and reevaluate our communications strategies, we have put ArtsBlog on hold. That is, you can read past blog posts, but we are not posting new ones. You can look to the Designing Our Destiny portal and our news items feed on the Americans for the Arts website for stories you would have seen in ArtsBlog in the past.

ArtsBlog will remain online through this year as we determine the best way to archive this valuable resource and the knowledge you’ve shared here.

As ever, we are grateful for your participation in ArtsBlog and thank you for your work in advancing the arts. It is important, and you are important for doing it.

A Time of Crisis, A Moment for Art: Sojourn Theatre and the Lima Senior High Dialogue Project

This case study documents Sojourn Theatre Company’s intervention at Lima, OH, Senior High School following a tragic shooting in 2008 that resurfaced racial tensions in the community. Lima City Schools enlisted Allen County Common Threads, a locally based volunteer group promoting arts-based civic dialogue and Sojourn Theatre Company to implement an immediate arts-based project to help students process the tragedy. Sojourn interviewed students, and wrote, performed, and recorded theatrical monologues expressing student perspectives on the incident and the racial tensions exposed by it. The recorded monologues became the centerpoint for school-wide dialogue facilitated by Common Threads volunteers. The case study describes the role artists can play in a crisis as well as the challenges of the fast pace dictated by crisis. It also underscores the continued value of arts-based civic engagement in this one community over time and the importance of artistic and financial resource for immediate crisis response.

This case study documents Sojourn Theatre Company’s intervention at Lima, OH, Senior High School following a tragic shooting in 2008 that resurfaced racial tensions in the community. Lima City Schools enlisted Allen County Common Threads, a locally based volunteer group promoting arts-based civic dialogue and Sojourn Theatre Company to implement an immediate arts-based project to help students process the tragedy. Sojourn interviewed students, and wrote, performed, and recorded theatrical monologues expressing student perspectives on the incident and the racial tensions exposed by it. The recorded monologues became the centerpoint for school-wide dialogue facilitated by Common Threads volunteers. The case study describes the role artists can play in a crisis as well as the challenges of the fast pace dictated by crisis. It also underscores the continued value of arts-based civic engagement in this one community over time and the importance of artistic and financial resource for immediate crisis response.

http://animatingdemocracy.org/sites/default/files/documents/reading_room/TimeofC…
Case Study
Gilbert, Judith E.; MacDonell, Martha S.; Weis, Mary F.
Exemplar Program
45
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File Title: 
Sojourn Theatre and the Lima Senior High Dialogue Project
Publisher Reference: 
Americans for the Arts
Research Abstract
Categories: 
Animating Democracy
Arts Education
Civic Dialogue and Social Change
Cultural Facilities
Legal Issues
Participation
Performing Arts Organizations
Is this an Americans for the Arts Publications: 
Yes
2008