Thursday, March 10, 2016

Field Leadership Fund: Meet Eric Lockley& Rachel DeGuzman

Artist Fellow, Eric Lockley is a Baltimore native and NYC - based actor, writer and producer. Regional theater credits include Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Choir Boy at the Studio Theatre in DC, How We Got On at Cleveland Playhouse, Game On at the National Black Arts Fest in Atlanta and black odyssey at the Denver Center Theater. New York stage credits include The Colored Museum, Hope Speaks, Holes, CATO and The Winter’s Tale. Lockley will also be featured in upcoming films Assisted Living starring Olympia Dukakis and Macy Gray, and Knockout Game. Television credits include features on HBO, MTV & BET. Lockley’s written works include his “affirmative action” comedy Blacken the Bubble and the sci-fi thriller, Without Trace. As a solo performer, Lockley has written and performs Last Laugh, exploring the mental health of 2 black entertainers, and Asking for More, an educational solo show that encourages health consciousness in urban youth.
As a founding member of two Harlem-based organizations, The Movement Theatre Company and OBIE-award winning, Harlem9, Eric has produced numerous productions, events and theatrical presentations that over the years have showcased over 400 artists of color at various stages in their careers. Stand-out achievements have been, Harlem 9's annual one-of-a-kind event "48 Hours in . . . HARLEM", and The Movement's acclaimed productions of Bintou and Look Upon Our Lowliness.  Eric’s most recent endeavor has been writing and producing his first film, “The Jump” – which explores one black boy’s special relationship with the water. www.ericlockley.com

"Sustaining a career in the arts without institutional or commercial support requires a significant amount of focus, faith, prioritizing, negotiating, creativity, patience, flexibility and determination. I’ve been able to sustain thus far and I look forward to thriving with the support of FLF."

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Manager Fellow, Rachel Y. DeGuzman is president & CEO of 21st Century Arts, a Rochester, NY based arts consultancy. She is the founder and executive producer of A Call to Action symposiums and the recently launched A Street Light Festival.

DeGuzman is an active member at VisitRochester and Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council Tourism/Arts Work Group. Rachel is a program partner of Janklow Arts Leadership Program at Syracuse University. She serves as an ongoing pro-bono advisor to several local arts and cultural organizations. Rachel writes a community arts blog at democratandchronicle.com and is the host of a weekly radio show, Up Close and Cultural, on WAYO 104.3 FM where she also serves on its leadership team..

Ms. DeGuzman was 1 of 14 national arts professionals selected by Association of Performing Arts Presenters for 2012/2013 Leadership Development Institute - where she spent a year in collective inquiry focused on the theme of Knowing and Connecting Art with Community. Her past positions include director of advancement/external relations at Rochester City Ballet and marketing and publicity manager of Nazareth College Arts Center.

She was director of development/communications at The Commission Project and director of development at Garth Fagan Dance. Rachel served on Mayor Warren's Neighborhood: Quality of Life transition focus group; was a grant panelist for Arts & Cultural Council for Greater Rochester and NYSCA/REDC. She was a member of the Arts & Cultural Council for Greater Rochester’s Cultural Diversity Initiative Committee.  DeGuzman was a past member of William Warfield Scholarship Fund board.
"The barriers that prevent us from creating a more diverse, inclusive and equitable field are systemic and must be addressed collaboratively and sector-wide. I am committed to owning leadership in that transformation."



Thursday, March 3, 2016

Field Leadership Fund: Meet Emily Berry & Jehan Young

Arts Organization Fellow, Emily Berry is the Artistic Director of B3W Performance Group, which has performed in the US, England, Greece, Italy, Thailand, and Mexico. In New York City, B3W has performed at Henry Street Settlement, Dance New Amsterdam, Dixon Place, BAAD!, the 92nd Street Y, The Irondale Center as part of FlicFest, and the Manhattan Movement Arts Center among others.

B3W received the Mondo Cane Commission from Dixon Place where we premiered Confined in September 2010 with a three-week run. Spin Art, B3Ws newest evening length work premiered at the Irondale Center January 30th, 2014 with live music by DBR. Spin Art inside of a cube with flying paint premiered in Queens in November of 2014.
Eva Yaa Asantewaa (InfiniteBody) describes Berrys work as “Memorable, intelligent, strong”. “Violent but engaging” are the words attached to Berrys work by Clare Croft in the Washington Post. Maura Donahue (Culturbot) writes about Confined as, “Clear expression of idea in movement”.

Emily has performed with danceTactics Performance Group/Keith Thompson, Boris Willis Moves, Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh & Company, Restless Native Dance/Tamieca McCloud, Lesoles Dance Project, and Ashe Moyubba/Alafia Afro-Cuban Folkloric Dance Ensemble. Emily is a Certified Movement Analyst. She also has a MFA in dance from George Mason  University. Her Bachelor of Dance Arts was earned from the University of Michigan along with a Bachelor of General Studies in Womens Studies and Political Science. She is currently an assistant professor of dance at Queensborough Community College.

"FLF will give us the help, support, and community to be more effective and efficient in our commitment to resource sharing, addressing issues of diversity, and developing B3W Performance Group as a company making work and engaged with communities in New York City, nationally, and internationally"

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Manager Fellow, Jehan O. Young, Born in Northern California, a week early and in time to attend my own baby shower, I have not been on time for anything since. 

My family eventually headed south of the Alameda County border and in the valley of the shadow of Big Bear Mountain I began to exhibit a certain penchant for performance. Caught in an exclusive living room engagement of lip-synched Peter Alsop covers, adorned with the luxurious cotton mane of a t-shirt belonging to a basket of laundry I was supposed to be folding cascading down my back, I was duly enrolled in ballet.

As a rising fifth grader and the latest transplant to a new school, I managed to land a part in the annual summer camp musical; not the lead, per se, but the character with the most lines; yes, 37 versus the mere 24 spoken by the main character. 
After a fierce audition process comprising each hopeful going to the back of the cafegymtorium and shouting: O Say Can You See By The Dawn’s Early Light (the one line only, nothing further) I won the part, a boy, due to my voice being considerably deeper than any other prepubescent. 

Two years out of college I landed in the Delta terminal of La Guardia airport with one degree, in pursuit of another and a suitcase full of things destined for a charity bin or the nearest curb. I haven’t looked back since. To Be Continued...

"I believe FLF is an opportunity to create a safe space for artists and arts supporters to experiment, to fail and then, to have failure inspire growth. As I endeavor in my own artistic pursuits and work towards gainfully supporting other artists, I am hopeful that I will be empowered to become a more resourceful and active participant of the arts."