Episode 105: Building the Poem

Nicole Terez Dutton is a poet, teacher, and literary editor who also served as the first poet laureate of Somerville, MA. She says, “Ultimately, we’re building poems because we want to connect with each other.” Language particular to an experience can reinvigorate our interaction with and our relationship to language itself.

Nicole Terez DuttonNicole Terez Dutton‘s work has appeared in CallalooPloughshares32 PoemsIndiana Review and Salt Hill Journal. Nicole earned an MFA from Brown University and has received fellowships from the Frost Place, the Fine Arts Work Center, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Her collection of poems, If One Of Us Should Fall, was selected as the winner of the 2011 Cave Canem Poetry Prize.

Continue reading “Episode 105: Building the Poem”

Episode 104: AHA! 20 Years of Placemaking

AHA! (Arts, History, Architecture) in New Bedford, MA is the longest continuously-funded placemaking and creative economy project in the country. For 20 years, this monthly, free, downtown cultural night and collaborative organization has provided a platform for community development and understanding. Lee Heald, Director of AHA!, discusses how their cross-sector work supports the local economy and deepens community pride.

Lee HealdSince 2007, Candace Lee Heald has served as the Director of AHA! New Bedford’s 2nd Thursday FREE Art and Culture Night. AHA! is the longest continuously funded grant for place-making and the creative economy from the Mass Cultural Council and continues to have one of the best returns on financial investment in the Commonwealth.

Continue reading “Episode 104: AHA! 20 Years of Placemaking”

Episode 103: Enhancing the Visibility of Professionals of Color

Last fall, we spoke with Audrey Seraphin, Membership and Capacity Building Manager at ArtsBoston, about how to get more people of color working in cultural organizations and about their Network for Arts Administrators of Color (or NAAC Boston). NAAC Boston enhances the visibility of professionals of color in Greater Boston’s arts and culture sector, and widens the leadership pipeline while highlighting opportunities for professional and personal growth in the field.

Audrey SeraphinAudrey Seraphin is an artist and arts administrator who works in the Boston theatre community as an actor, director, stage manager, and community organizer. By day, she is the Membership & Capacity Building Manager at ArtsBoston, where she runs the Network of Arts Administrators of Color (NAAC) Boston. Audrey moonlights as the Community Engagement Director at The Front Porch Arts Collective, a Black theatre company dedicated to eradicating racial injustice in Boston.

Continue reading “Episode 103: Enhancing the Visibility of Professionals of Color”

Episode 102: Music Triumphs Over Injustice

The Boston Gay Men’s Chorus is one of New England’s largest and most successful community-based choruses. Executive Director Craig Coogan discusses their work as performers and cultural ambassadors – in the US and abroad – to inspire change and celebrate difference.

Craig Coogan. Photo by Michael Willer.Craig Coogan joined the BGMC as Executive Director in October 2012. He is an expert in developing strategies and programs to help LGBTQA and other nonprofit organizations achieve their operational and artistic goals. A graduate of Syracuse University, he brings experience in both the for-profit and non-profit arenas.

Continue reading “Episode 102: Music Triumphs Over Injustice”

Episode 101: An Emergence of the People, their Spirit, their Stories

L’Merchie Frazier is an artist and Director of Education and Interpretation for the Museum of African American History, Boston/Nantucket. Her work is centered on helping others to find their voice and discover their own innate creativity. She shares how her community projects aim to encourage people – individually and collectively – to participate in the arena of art-making.

L'Merchie FrazierL’Merchie Frazier, a public fiber artist, innovator, poet and holographer, is Director of Education and Interpretation for the Museum of African American History, Boston/Nantucket, engaged in highlighting and curating the Museum’s collection/exhibits, providing place-based education and interdisciplinary history programs, projects and lectures, most recently promoting STEM / STEAM education pedagogy, and manages Faculty/ Teachers’ Institutes and its extension, The Cross Cultural Classroom, a benefit marketed to independent education entities, municipalities and corporations.

Continue reading “Episode 101: An Emergence of the People, their Spirit, their Stories”