Following are the components of the Common Threads/Animating Democracy Initiative:
Theater Residency
In the fall of 2002,The Council will sponsor a 4-week community residency by Sojourn Theatre of Portland, Oregon, and it’s artistic director, Michael Rohd, who is recognized as a national expert in addressing community issues through storytelling and improvisational theater techniques. He has authored a training manual titled Theatre for Community, Conflict and Dialogue.
The objective of the residency is for the professional artists to conduct storytelling and improvisational theater workshops in all sectors of the Lima/Allen County community to gather material for a new theatre work, which will stimulate civic dialogue around the previously identified issues of trust among leaders and respecting differences.
Local people will be trained as dialogue facilitators by Dr. Patricia Romney, an experienced facilitator of arts-based civic dialogue, to insure that these skills are available locally in the future.
Allen County Common Threads 2002 Conference
A one-day conference at the Lima/Allen County Civic and Convention Center is scheduled for fall 2002. The objective of the conference is to 1) provide continuing experiences in the Common Threads approach 2) to immerse participants in an arts-related method for stimulating significant purposeful civic dialogue expressing multiple perspectives around important issues.
Conference Details:
Friday, October 11, 2002
8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Lima Civic Center
Featuring a preview performance of PASSING GLANCES and conversations on questions that matter based on observations from the theatre work. The conference will focus on issues of difference, leadership and history in Allen County as presented in Sojourn Theatre's Passing Glances: Mirrors and Windows in Allen County. Participants will explore the opportunities and challenges observed in the original theatre documentary.
Conference Fee: $20 to cover lunch, refreshments, admission to Passing Glances and conference materials.
Limited Scholarships are available. Call the Common Threads office for details.
For more information, contact the Common Threads office at 419-224-6873
Please print the following form and return it with your $20 conference registration fee, made payable to Common Threads, to: Allen County Common Threads 2002, P. O. Box 5283, Lima, OH 45802.
The registration form is in Adobe Acrobat(R) format. If you do not have the Acrobat Reader(R), you can download Adobe Acrobat Reader(R) at no charge.
registrationform
Public Performances
PASSING GLANCES: Mirrors and Windows in Allen County
An original poetic documentary presented by Sojourn Theatre Company. Based on hundreds of interviews and workshops in Allen County, the play explores issues of difference, leadership and history in our area.
Public Premiere at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, October 12
Matinee at 2 p.m., Sunday, October 13
All performances at the Veterans Memorial Civic Center of Lima/Allen County
Tickets are $5 and go on sale September 3 at the Civic Center Box Office. (419-224-1552). Call for group rates.
Visual Arts Exhibit
After the conference, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m., visit the Alma Gallery at Memorial Hall to view an invitational visual arts exhibit inspired by Common Threads and sponsored by the Council for the Arts of Greater Lima and ArtSpace/Lima.
PlayFair Activities
A playwright competition sponsored by the Civic Center Foundation will choose two winning plays on the themes of trust among leaders and respecting differences. These plays will be presented in March 2003. Dialogue will follow, facilitated by trained local facilitators.
