SPRING 2021
Spektral Quartet Photo Credit: Jocelyn Chuan
Dear friends, Thank you for your dedication and continued support of the Celebrity Series of Boston. While this season has been one of the most challenging for the organization in its 83-year history, the steady and generous support of our Celebrity Series family has served as a constant source of inspiration over the last twelve months. From the beginning, we decided that how we treat our audiences, donors, artists, and staff would define our success. In April 2020, we launched Celebrity Series at Home and became one of the earliest presenters nationally to offer new digital content, with a series of 12 live-streamed concerts from April through June, all featuring local Neighborhood Arts artists. What began as a short-term effort to keep artists employed and audiences engaged in the spring of 2020 has deepened strategically over the course of the 2020-21 season. Now, with the spring of 2021 upon us, we are at the point of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel… though we are not quite sure how long the tunnel is. As we look ahead to the 2021-22 season and beyond, we are guided by our core values of supporting artists in their creative process, partnering with community-based organizations, and providing access to the performing arts in the communities of Greater Boston. Although artists around the world have faced extraordinary challenges during this pandemic, what remains is their deep desire to make connections with audiences like you, to create impact through their artistic voices, and to show all of us that if we stick together, work together, and support one another, we will continue to stay strong and resilient. Thank you for being a member of our Celebrity Series family. We look forward to seeing you in the concert halls, just as soon as we are able. In the meantime, be well, stay well, and take good care. In gratitude,
Gary Dunning President and Executive Director
Amy Lam Artistic Director
BLACK VOICES BOSTON: OUR STORIES IN WORDS AND MOVEMENT
Janaeya Moon-Sprinkle
In the closing moments of Black Voices Boston, host Akiba Abaka speaks to the importance of story in the shaping of Black history and asks some important questions. “Each generation adds new steps to the global Black journey—new stories to the global Black history. As we walk along our personal pathways, what will we remember about this time in our lives? What will we tell our children? How will we move in the world?” These questions—made even more potent in light of how COVID-19 has reshaped our world—were addressed in unique ways through Celebrity Series’ virtual showcase launched in December. Partnering with choreographer Rafael Palacios, the Artistic Director of Afro-Colombian dance company Sankofa Danzafro, Black Voices Boston is a storytelling and movement project featuring short dance works created and performed by members of Boston’s Black communities.
BLACK VOICES BOSTON PARTICIPANTS Cherié Butts PhD, medical director from Medford, Mass. Marlon Forrester, painter, and art educator from Mattapan, Boston Napoleon Jones-Henderson, renowned artist and educator from Roxbury, Boston Shirley Jones-Luke, writer, poet, and public-school educator from Dorchester, Boston Nina La Negra, resident teaching artist and art educator from the South End, Boston Janaeya Moon-Sprinkle, rising high school senior and rapper from Dorchester Ellice Patterson, Executive Director of Abilities Dance Boston and Ballet Rox, from Brookline, Mass.
First premiering on December 6 and now available on Celebrity Series’ website, Black Voices Boston was created after Sankofa Danzafro’s scheduled to return to Boston was canceled due to travel restrictions and coronavirus shutdowns. In a season of restricted gathering and heightened social tensions over racial injustice, Black Voices Boston gave seven individuals an opportunity to translate their personal stories into short dance films. Participants of Black Voices Boston were chosen from dozens of applicants, who submitted themselves through a written letter to Palacios. Those chosen represent the diversity found in Boston’s Black communities—from dancers and artists to educators and a scientist. “It was a life-changing experience,” says Marlon Forrester, a painter and art educator from Mattapan. “Rafael allowed me to take pieces of a poem I wrote and turn the emotion behind those pieces into dance. [I was able to] manifest it in a way that I never thought could be manifested. It was a very powerful connection and collaboration.” Black Voices Boston begins an international journey to create a body of work anchored by words and motion, and built on ideals of social bonding, personal growth, and the positioning of local cultures in global dynamics. We invite you to view the showcase and read the stories of our seven participants online at www.celebrityseries.org/blackvoices.
Celebrity Series is thankful to the generous sponsors of Black Voices Boston: Foley & Lardner LLP and 2020/21 Dance Series sponsors Stephanie L. Brown Foundation, Cynthia & John S. Reed Foundation, and the Royal Little Family Foundation. Support for this project was provided by the Barr Foundation and its ArtsAmplified initiative, and by the National Endowment for the Arts through its CARES Act funds.
Marlon Forrester
CELEBRITY SERIES GOING DIGITAL IN 2020 Last spring, Celebrity Series launched our first-ever digital series, Celebrity Series at Home. Featuring Boston-based Neighborhood Arts artists, as well as international touring artists, our digital programming offered an unparalleled platform for artists with far-reaching impact.
NEW SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
DIVERSE REPRESENTATION
The Celebrity Series team managed the capture, production, and broadcast of digital performance content in multiple scenarios and settings.
In the 18 fall performances, artists of color represented 61% of the total number of artists performing on the series.
NEW AUDIENCE
DIGITAL PERFORMANCES
Celebrity Series was one of the first arts organizations in the country to announce its revised Fall Season with free and ticketed digital concerts on July 23, 2020.
For paid performances, 51% were new viewers or donors from outside of Boston, 49% from the Greater Boston area. For Neighborhood Arts performances, 68% were new ticket buyers or donors from SUPPORT Greater Boston, 32% from outside the Greater FOR A WIDE RANGE MULTIPLE GENRES Boston area. All primary genres consistent OF ARTISTS. with a full Celebrity Series season A total of 64 artists (13 international were represented: Classical, Jazz, touring artists and 51 neighborhood Dance, and Contemporary/ artists) were formally engaged STRENGTH AND World/Americana. by Celebrity Series in fall RESILIENCE 2020. This initiative achieves the key strategic goal during this pandemic of strengthening the relationships with our artists, audiences, donors, and staff. Thank you for joining us on the virtual stage.
Pictured, clockwise beginning in upper left: Emanuel Ax, student participant from Roxbury Stringfest, Jeremy Denk, Jason Palmer, youth participants at Concert for One, Regie Gibson, Ellice Patterson, Rayna Yun Chou
NON PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE
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20 Park Plaza, Suite 1032 Boston, MA 02116
STAY TUNED
this June for updates about our return to live performance in our 2021-22 season! You can also visit us online at
celebrityseries.org.