Read the press release here.

2013 NCAC Scholarship Form

Brause Realty donates space for HealingNewtown’s art activities.

The Newtown Cultural Arts Commission (NCAC) met last night for the first time in its temporary headquarters for the HealingNewtown project, an operation to help NCAC to manage the overwhelming response by artists, arts organizations, stakeholders and the overwhelming number of creative contributions being offered to help Newtown.

The HealingNewtown Art Space is being donated by Brause Realty and located downtown at 5 Queen Street.  It will be used as a place for organizers to field calls related to the arts, meet with community members, facilitate contributed arts programs geared toward healing, a place for parents to meet over a cup of coffee and to get online, to display gallery of artworks from around the state and around the country, a safe meeting place for children and families during the long process of healing.  More detailed information will be forthcoming, and the grand opening will be February 14, 2013 from 4:00-7:00 p.m.

David Brause, President of Brause Realty Inc., said,” As owners of the Shoppes at Newtown, we are so pleased to contribute retail space to the Newtown Cultural Arts Commission and the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut.  In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook tragedy, we are glad to be a part of the healing process that this group will enable.”

Coordination of arts related contributions

The Newtown Cultural Commission serves as a liaison for all arts related offers to help families and Newtown. Major support for the HealingNewtown project is being provided by the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut and DECD Connecticut Office of the Arts with planning, development, and implementation. First Selectman E. Patricia Llodra extends sincere thanks for the generosity of caring persons in creative communities and encourages those interested to please work through the Cultural Commission so that efforts may be better coordinated and produce the desired outcomes.

Creative and monetary contributions

Nearly 400 offers have been received so far by visual and performing artists, arts therapists, arts organizations, and various stakeholders looking to connect with this effort. The Commission receives at least 15-20 offers a day regarding the arts, including offers to conduct workshops and programs, to donate art, music and dance performances fundraising events, murals and memorials.  “This group is archiving all these very kind offers for us to review when we are ready to consider our plans for a permanent memorial”, says Pat Llodra, First Selectman.

Anyone looking to donate artwork or a creative idea to help the healing process should go to www.healingnewtown.org and complete a ‘call to action’ form.  Volunteers are getting organized and will be contacting people very soon to begin coordination.  Monetary contributions are also possible through the website.  The HealingNewtown Arts Fund has been established by the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut and designed to receive only arts related contributions.  The Cultural Alliance will not take any percentage of the fund for administrative purposes.

About the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut

The Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut (formally the Housatonic Valley Cultural Alliance), based in Danbury, Connecticut is a leader in supporting a vibrant arts and culture community in Northern Fairfield and Southern Litchfield Counties. We promote and advocate for arts, history, and culture as a primary driver of the economy and as an enriching influence for communities and people. We understand and believe that the arts sector is a critical engine for growth through creativity, innovation and collaboration. The Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut, a 501c-3, is the largest and only regional service organization working to ensure better access to arts and culture for all residents and visitors in the Housatonic Valley region. We are supported by public funding, corporate and private contributions, and by our members. www.artswesternct.org

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http://www.newtownartscommission.org

On December 14, 2012, tragedy struck Sandy Hook Elementary School and our nation mourned with the residents of Newtown, Connecticut. As the town slowly attempts to recover, Broadway stars, producers, writers, and directors will lend their voices in support. “From Broadway with Love: A Benefit Concert For Sandy Hook” will take place on January 28, 2013 at 7:00 pm at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT, 20 minutes from Newtown.

“From Broadway with Love: A Benefit Concert For Sandy Hook” will feature song, dance, and other appearances from some of the biggest names on Broadway, together with select students from various Newtown choirs and dance groups.

Renowned Broadway performers scheduled to appear include Brian Stokes Mitchell, Linda Eder, Stephen Schwartz, Micky Dolenz, Marc Shaiman, Michael Cerveris, Christine Ebersole, Frank Wildhorn, Philip Boykin, Richard Kind, Andrea McArdle, Nikki Blonsky, Alan Muraoka, Jan Maxwell, Robin De Jesus, Seth Rudetsky, Julia Murney, Isabela Moner, Lance Guest, Erik Hayden, Randy Redd, Dan Mills, and Victoria Matlock. More performers will be announced soon.

Event proceeds will go to United Way of Western Connecticut’s Sandy Hook School Support Fund. Additional info and announcements coming soon!

Tickets will be provided at no cost to the families directly affected by the tragedy and any first responders who were at the school that day. For the Sandy Hook Elementary School’s students, families, teachers, and administrators, a limited number of tickets are available for free on a first come first serve basis. Please email your name, phone number, and address along with the number of tickets requested to SandyHookTickets@FromBroadwayWithLove.org

Press Inquiries & Additional Resources: Saul Markowitz & Robin Hawbaker Markowitz Communications | press@frombroadwaywithlove.org | (412) 577-5140 Click Here To Download Press Pack (Show Info & Logo) | Additional Press Resource Page Coming Soon

This benefit event is made possible, in part, by the generous donations from many companies and individuals including: Atomic Rental | Bay Bridge Productions | Bermuda Limousine International | Consulting for a Cause One Dream Sound | The Palace Theater of Waterbury, CT | Sean Francis & The Silent Orchestra

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Healing Newtown Through The Power Of The Arts

Newtown and the Sandy Hook Community are deeply appreciative of the outpouring of love, support and generosity from our fellow citizens locally, regionally, nationally and worldwide.

To facilitate support and coordinate arts-focused efforts made on our behalf for today, tomorrow and into the future we have designated the HealingNewtown.org website to be managed by the Newtown Cultural Arts Commission, supported by the Cultural Alliance of Western Connecticut and the Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA).

As Newtown and the Sandy Hook Community work through the many stages of healing we invite you to visit this site often to learn how you can help and how to become part of our arts healing process. This arts action team will address all related inquiries, ideas, and fundraising.  An official arts healing fund has been established for this purpose.

For more information send Email info@HealingNewtown.org
Keep up-to-date at: http://www.healingnewtown.org
Find us on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/healingnewtown

“Art is a nation’s most precious heritage. For it is in our works of art that we reveal to ourselves and to others the inner vision which guides us as a nation. And where there is no vision, the people perish.”
–Lyndon Johnson, on signing into existence the National Endowment on the Arts

Most of us think of “support” for the arts in terms of making a donation, especially since many arts organizations are non-profits.  Donations can account for half of the operating budget of a theatre company, for instance, so these are prized, and doubly so when your company will match it!  Dropping your spare bills and change in the donations jar when you go to a movie at the Edmond Town Hall, or a free concert at Dickenson Park, is a welcome way to help out too.  Through our contributions, we ensure that the programs we value will be around for the future.

Maybe you don’t realize that simply buying your tickets early is an effective way to show you care.  Often there are discounts available to those who buy early, or become subscription holders.  As people wait until the last day to buy tickets, behind the scenes, producers are under stress wondering if they are going to break even at all!  Registering early for a free event at the library, or a summer camp, makes a big difference since events get cancelled if there isn’t enough response.

Volunteering to help out a non-profit makes any event more fun, and has it’s perks besides making you feel good.  Become a volunteer at a theater, and you could see every show for free.  Volunteer for a board position, and you could help steer the direction of a non-profit.  All it costs you is your time, and maybe some gasoline.  An event like the Newtown Arts Festival depends on many volunteers.  Every person heading a committee has specific skills that make them perfect for the role they play, but we will need even more during the festival weekend.

Help to spread the word about performances you enjoy, encourage your friends to go, or better yet make it a night out with them.  The advent of social networking makes it so easy to spread the word about everything we Like.  Why not go further?  Our opinions matter to our friends, so add a comment to posts you see and contribute to the virtual dialogue.

Advertising in a playbill is a great way for a business to get involved, and there are plenty of opportunities here in town.  Alternatively, businesses who become Sponsors also get recognition, and build “good will” in our community.  Right now, our performing arts organizations are seeking sponsors and advertisers for their upcoming seasons, be proactive and give them a call.

Join us as a vendor, demonstrator, volunteer or attendee for our first annual outdoor Newtown Arts Festival, September 15 & 16, 2012, on the Fairfield Hills campus.  To find out more about this exciting event, contact Donna Mangiafico at djmangiafico@aol.com.

Note to Vendors: Booths will be assigned a fee based on their location at the festival.  A tiered pricing plan includes sites that vary in price from $150 for prime spots to $50.  The majority of booth sites are at the mid-range price point, $75. All interested vendors should contact Stacey Olszewski (staceyolszewski@yahoo.com) to discuss vendor opportunities and obtain an application.  We will continue to use the jury process and all vendors must offer an art-related product or service.

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The Newtown Cultural Arts Commission is pleased to announce that Newtown resident Tracy Van Buskirk is the chosen winner for the 2012 Newtown Arts Festival art contest for her “Life in Newtown” themed entry entitled Ram Pasture.  Van Buskirk wanted to capture the town’s serenity and pleasure.  With her block print of Ram Pasture, she captured this tranquil mood and more!  Her Asian-style rendition of this early burg landmark with its soft pastels reminds viewers of many beautiful days walking or playing by the pasture’s pond or feeding the ducks.

The Newtown Arts Festival Artwork Selection Committee received many creative entries, several from area artists as well as Newtown students.  All posters will be displayed, many that received other honorary awards in the contest, from 5:30 to 6:30 PM at The Flagpole Radio Café pre-show Reception in the Alexandria Room of the Edmond Town Hall. The Flagpole Radio Café ticket holders and Newtown Arts Festival art contest contributors and their families and friends are invited to view the artwork and help kick off the festival.  For those wishing to attend The Flagpole Radio Café show, this month featuring guest artist Livingston Taylor, tickets are available at www.flagpoleproductions.org .

Van Buskirk says that she was drawn to art at a very young age.  Although deciding not to major in art at college, instead pursuing a degree in East Asian studies at Oberlin, she always found time for this avocation during her busy work and family schedule.   In 1999, Van Buskirk, who was making clay jewelry, arranged for the Southern Connecticut Polymer Clay Guild to create Bottles of Hope for breast cancer survivor Diane Gregoire.  Now, Bottles of Hope is a national organization that distributes beautifully decorated bottles to cancer patients.  For the past five years, she and her husband, Peter, have been advisors for the Venture Crew, a year-round outdoor co-educational program.  It builds skills and self-esteem, for youths from ages 14 to 21 with such activities as snowshoeing, camping, hiking, rock climbing, caving, and canoeing.  The Van Buskirks, long-time residents of Newtown, have two children, Elisa, 24 and Dana, 22.

When deciding entries for the Newtown Arts Festival’s contest, Van Buskirk considered that linoleum block designs, which she has been making for the past several years, would reproduce well on t-shirts and posters.  She drove around in her car, camera in hand, for ideas. When she saw Ram Pasture, she knew this was the perfect scene to depict Newtown.  “I’m very excited to have my artwork on the first—we hope of many—annual Newtown Arts Festival posters and t-shirts,” she says.  “I love the arts, and am pleased that Newtown is going to have this special event.”  Van Buskirk is also receiving a $500.00 prize for her artwork.

The Newtown Arts Festival, to be held September 15 to 16, 2012, at Fairfield Hills, rain or shine, will be celebrating all the arts from poetry to dance.  Workshops, live music, arts and crafts, farmers market, children’s activities and more will be crammed into these two days.  More information can be found at www.newtownartscommission.org.

Let me be clear, the proposed budget does not eliminate funding for arts organizations.

Our goals in making these changes are simple – we want to create a system that demands accountability standards and sets performance benchmarks for organizations that receive state money. The current system of simply allocating an earmark does not do that. It does not ask the organization to disclose how that money is being spent, how much the funding provided by the state contributes to the entirety of that organization’s budget or how many people take part in a given exhibit or event.

The system we want to work toward will demand that accountability, and the competitive nature by which the grants will be allocated could in fact increase funding for some groups. And just as importantly, it will let taxpayers know that their hard earned dollars are going to worthwhile projects that enrich their lives and make Connecticut a more attractive place to live and to visit – projects that truly rely on state funding.

We are asking for sacrifices from groups across the spectrum, including many state agencies. I believe these are reasonable asks for any group that receives state money during these incredibly challenging fiscal times.

Coming from local government, I appreciate that some arts and cultural organizations depend on the earmarked state grants and that they build their budgets around it. We appreciate their need for continuity of funding. To that end, the Department of Economic and Community Development will develop a phase-in approach for funding in FY 2013 that guarantees existing earmark recipients will receive 80% of the allocation they received the prior year, with the remainder being allocated on competitive basis. Commissioner Smith will provide more details in March about that process.

In addition, we will work with the legislature to segregate funding for arts and cultural organizations from the tourism marketing account in order to clarify our objective that this funding be used to support arts organizations.

This administration has a strong track record of negotiating on contentious issues, including the state budget. We are always willing to discuss our proposals with advocates for the arts and look forward to a solution that will meet our goals while maintaining important cultural institutions.

Contact:
Gian-Carl Casa
Undersecretary for Legislative Affairs
Office of Policy and Management
State of Connecticut
450 Capitol Avenue
Hartford, CT 06106

Phone: 860-418-6362