The Heinz Poll Summer Dance Festival has been an Akron staple for nearly 50 years, and Heinz Poll himself was instrumental in making Akron a destination for dance. (Photo courtesy: Heinz Poll Summer Dance Festival) Editor’s note: Tessa Gaffney is a graduate assistant in the Arts Admin program at the University of Akron. This is the first in a series of interviews with … [Read more...]
Akron Children’s Museum becomes home base for area families, plans expansion for STEAM learning
Photo: Anna Glotzer The momentum of Akron Children’s Museum, whose doors opened in late 2016, has touched the lives of families in Akron as a cornerstone for play and learning. Downtown Akron’s flourishing arts and culture, civic and community engagement, and a family-friendly network generated by Lock 3 has proven to be the perfect space for the organization. Akron … [Read more...]
Registrations open for Crafty Mart Maker Sessions for beginner, advanced artists and makers
Crafty Mart will kick off another round of Maker Sessions programming, beginning Thursday, March 5. The Maker Sessions is a seven-week workshop intensive, now in its fifth series, that invites artists and makers at various levels of experience to receive in-person training and guidance on all aspects of their business, concluding in a business launch party and … [Read more...]
Akron Soul Train hosts opening reception for ‘United’ exhibit March 5
Akron Soul Train will host an opening reception for “United,” a show featuring the works of its artist-in-residence and Akron native, Shani Richards, Thursday, March 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Akron Soul Train Gallery, 191 King James Way, in downtown Akron. As a trained metalsmith, Shani says she is fascinated with “how people use jewelry, body modifications, shoes and … [Read more...]
Akron Art Bomb Brigade hosts 3rd Annual Flannel Fest Feb. 15
Akron Art Bomb Brigade, a community arts project that breathes new life into Akron neighborhoods through vibrant public murals, will host its 3rd Annual Flannel & Music Fest fundraiser, Saturday, Feb. 15, at 7 p.m., at Musica, The event includes live music, contests and raffles and contests celebrating winter beards, flannels and the limbo. Musica is located at 51 E. … [Read more...]
Akron Soul Train hosts open mic event Feb. 22
Akron Soul Train will host an open mic, featuring poet Damien McClendon, Saturday, Feb. 22, from 7 to 9 p.m., at the Akron Soul Train gallery, 191 King James Way, in downtown Akron. McClendon is a Kent State alum and award-winning Cleveland-based poet. He was a semi-finalist in three consecutive National Poetry Slams and placed 7th in the World Slam. McClendon was … [Read more...]
Rubber City Ukes makes Akron Civic Theatre debut Feb. 16
The Rubber City Ukes, an Akron-area ukulele collaborative, will take the stage at the Akron Civic Theatre for “Ukulele Explosion,” Sunday, Feb. 16. at 2:30 p.m. The concert will celebrate the small but mighty stringed instrument, whose influence spans from traditional Hawaiian music to American folk and pop, classical and country. “Ukulele Explosion” also will feature local … [Read more...]
Weathervane acting experience helps challenge gender roles, notion of ‘fitting in’
Editor’s note: Laura Niehaus is an Education and Outreach advocate at Hope & Healing Survivor Resource Center. Niehaus appears in Margaret Atwood’s “Alias Grace” through Feb. 2 at Weathervane Playhouse. “I used to think that if I could hug myself tight enough I could make myself smaller, because there was never enough room for me, at home or anywhere, but if I was … [Read more...]
‘Outlaw Ink’ at UA’s Emily Davis Gallery captures dark humor of hillbillies, urban dystopia
Photo courtesy of University of Akron. “Outlaw Ink: Hück and Hogarth,” currently on view at the Emily Davis Gallery, in the University of Akron’s Myers School of Art, consists of everything from “hillbillies doing bad stuff” in Middle America to the urban dystopia of 18th century England. On display through Feb. 14, the exhibit features works by American printmaker Tom Hück … [Read more...]
Bounce Innovation Hub selects Ace Epps as Director of Inclusive Entrepreneurship
Ace Epps has been named director of inclusive entrepreneurship for Bounce Innovation Hub, effective Jan. 1. Epps has served as an entrepreneur-in-residence and business advisor at Bounce since July 2019. A certified facilitator for the Ice House Entrepreneur Program, he brings 20 years of experience in the areas of workforce development, black male engagement and minority … [Read more...]
