PROVIDENCE, RI - FirstWorks Festival: On the Plaza in 2012 will transform Providence's Greater Kennedy Plaza into an astonishing outdoor performance venue and multi-stage spectacle with world-class local, national and international performing artists on September 29th from 4pm - 11pm.
FirstWorks is the lead Cultural Partner; collaborating with the City of Providence Department of Art, Culture + Tourism, Mayor Angel Taveras; Providence's Downtown Parks Conservancy; and over a dozen other cultural organizations in this creative place making project funded in part by a National Endowment for the Arts "Our Town" grant.
The FirstWorks Festival: On the Plaza in 2012 turns gravity sideways with Bandaloop's spectacular vertical performance held 30-stories in the air, brings art-rock music to audiences as Squonk Opera tours on a roving two-story-tall stage, circles the globe with martial arts dance from Sumatra, and introduces New York style and sophistication to Afro-Caribbean rhythm and passion with the Spanish Harlem Orchestra.
Audiences will journey through colonnades of burning braziers and wildly imaginative public art installations by RISD artists to hear The Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra fill Providence City Hall with Stravinsky. Attendees can revel in roaming Shakespearean performances by Brown/Trinity Rep MFA students, and enjoy a full WaterFire with over eighty bonfires installed on the three rivers of downtown Providence.
In all, over 200 national and international guest artists will take to the streets of Greater Kennedy Plaza, transformed into a pedestrian plaza for one-night only, to create a gateway to the arts and a world of culture during this free festival of music, dance and performance. The line-up is now at www.first-works.org.
"This Festival will be truly unique," said Kathleen Pletcher, executive artistic director of FirstWorks. "People will be able to dance the night away, stroll to performances by world-class artists and encounter intriguing public art projects, roving street bands and other surprises along the way."
Pletcher added, "We will have local food trucks at the Festival Café and thanks to generous sponsorship from Meritage Properties, owners of One Financial Plaza, we will have an amazing performance 30-stories in the air - all right here in Kennedy Plaza - free. It is going to be a kinetic extravaganza that will introduce visitors to amazing artists and performers."
"The FirstWorks Festival: On the Plaza is debuting as a signature tourism event featuring both local and national guest artists," said Lynne McCormack, Director, Department of Art, Culture + Tourism. "The National Endowment for the Arts has given us an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen our commitment to the arts as an engine for growth and to recognize the arts in Providence and the city's growing role as a creative place and a creative community."
The objective of this initiative is to re-envision Greater Kennedy Plaza, the historic and transit hub of Providence, Rhode Island, as a vibrant town square. "A thriving arts sector brings with it economic and cultural vitality that helps drive community sustainability," said Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.
An extraordinary coalition of public, corporate and non-profit partners have contributed to the project including: WaterFire, Festival Ballet Providence, Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Programs, RI Philharmonic Orchestra, RI School of Design, The Steel Yard, Providence ¡CityArts! for Youth, AS220, RIPTA, Downtown Improvement District, Providence Department of Parks and Recreation, Department of Planning and Development, Cornish Associates and the Providence Foundation.
Andy Nathan, CEO of Meritage Properties and owners of One Financial Plaza said, "We are thrilled to participate in the FirstWorks Festival: On the Plaza in 2012 and proud to be part of the Providence community."
Saturday, September 29th 4pm - 11pm
Greater Kennedy Plaza
Free
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