INTRODUCING SPAC’S NEW CHAIRWOMAN, SUSAN LAW DAKE

THE LIBRARY IS OPEN!

SPAC UNVEILS ITS LEARNING LIBRARY, AN ONLINE RESOURCE PACKED WITH FREE ARTS EDUCATION CONTENT.

When the COVID-19 crisis hit Saratoga Springs in mid-March— and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo locked the entire state down shortly after—it essentially ground all manner of life and culture in the area to a halt. Eventually, SPAC would be forced to cancel its entire 2020 season, but the arts institution didn’t stand by idle. Instead, it immediately swung into action, ramping up its arts education programming online by launching a series of initiatives under the umbrella of its innovative SPAC REIMAGINED campaign.

“Since the stay-at-home order, we woke up every morning and said, ‘What could we do for the community?’” said SPAC’s President and CEO Elizabeth Sobol at the time. “What could we do to help people maintain hope—to share what SPAC is all about on a daily basis?” In early May, SPAC had an answer. The arts center unveiled its virtual Learning Library, a sprawling repository of free, original content, video lessons and arts education programming directed at the 120-plus partnering schools and local nonprofit organizations that would be missing out on its usual crush of in-person, educational activities. The library, which lives at spaclearninglibrary.org, is divided into six unique channels:

(from top) Two scenes from Kitchen Floor Dance Classes with Broadway actors Dennis Moench and Eric Hatch; a SPAC Break that introduces viewers to a classical Indian dance; New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Daniel Ulbricht leads a SPAC Break. (from top) A printable coloring SPAC-tivity; a string quartet sing-a-long with the KASA Quartet from the Caroga Arts Collective; a step routine SPAC Break with Soul Steps Founder Maxine Lyle.

» SPAC Breaks are packed with short,

introductory videos on everything from ballet dancing, taught by a dancer from the New York City Ballet; and “kitchen drumming,” by a member of the

Fourth Wall Ensemble; to singing (and clapping!) along with the KASA Quartet from the Caroga Arts Collective.

» Stories That Move features dancers from

the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company teaching choreographed dances synced to spoken word short stories.

» Kitchen Floor Dance Class is a four-part

series of instructional dance videos hosted by Broadway actors Dennis

Moench (Les Misérables), who also serves as SPAC’s director of education; and Eric Hatch (West Side Story).

» The Virtual Dance Lab is where

participants can learn professional-level modern dances, courtesy of dancers from the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company; as well as the African American dance tradition known as “stepping,” via Soul Steps’ Founder Maxine Lyle.

» Printable SPAC-tivities include coloring

book-like pages such as a SPAC grounds maze, plus name-that-composer and hidden instruments games.

» Shared Resources features a plethora

of multi-video series from the

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln

Center; The Philadelphia Orchestra; and Skidmore College’s Dance to

Success, an integrative movement program that works to bring highquality dance into the everyday routine of elementary students.

Needless to say, the library has been a major hit with area teachers. “My teachers and I absolutely love the dance videos in SPAC’s new Learning Library,” says Deborah Keough, district music supervisor for the North Colonie School District. “They’re fabulous! The only sustainability that any arts organization has lies in its ability to connect with a young audience. SPAC shows us again that they know this well.”

YOUNG ARTISTS RISE ABOVE

SPAC HOSTS ITS THIRD ANNUAL THE ADIRONDACK TRUST COMPANY FESTIVAL OF YOUNG ARTISTS

Talk about a virtual home run. On July 8, SPAC hosted its third annual Festival of Young Artists (FOYA) (spacfoya.org), this year virtually, due to COVID-19 concerns. The festival featured a wealth of wonderful art produced by students from the Adirondacks, Saratoga and the Capital Region.

Participants had the opportunity to engage in a trio of mediums, including visual, literary and performance art. The results demonstrate just how truly talented the region’s students are. Included in the cache of content online is a student-created visual art exhibition; and a literary gallery, featuring poems, essays and short stories written by local students. You can even listen to select poems read by the young authors themselves and watch a video of a dance performance choreographed in tandem with one of the poems.

In pre-pandemic times, FOYA was an all-day affair and presented student art shows, poetry slams and live performances, with hundreds of young dancers, singers and musicians, all performing at SPAC. But this year’s virtual gallery space will be extra special, as it will remain an ongoing platform for student artists in the region to share their artistic visions and achievements—and to inspire and enrich their peers and the community. Help support future iterations of FOYA today at spacfoya.org. “THESE TALENTED YOUNG INDIVIDUALS GIVE US HOPE THAT THE NEXT GENERATION WILL CONTINUE THIS AREA’S LEGACY OF CELEBRATING CREATIVITY IN ALL FORMS.” – Charles V. Wait, Jr., Adirondack Trust Company President and CEO

(clockwise from top left) Self-Portrait by Yassin Hag-Elsafi; Untitled by Riley Borst; Self-Portrait by Anna Wang; Resilience by Nate Tys; (opposite, clockwise from top left) Dimitrii by Aislinn Dailey; When I Grow Up performance piece with cellist Avery Roach and ballet dancer Lia Richter; Self-Portrait by Pallavi Datta