N E W S
Imagination Celebration Fort Worth to Host 19th
Annual Weekend for 500 Deaf, Hard of Hearing Youth
“Rennais-Art” Unique Two-Day
Festival Will Inspire, Educate
(FORT WORTH, TEX)… Imagination Celebration Fort Worth (ICFW),
which excels in bringing innovational science and art education programs
to children locally, nationally, and internationally, continues to
break down barriers with the 2009 Weekend for the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing on April 17-18 at the Dallas/Fort Worth Marriott Hotel and
Golf Club at Champion Circle.
This is the 19th iteration of a one-of-a-kind gathering of deaf and hard of
hearing Texas youth, and deaf and hearing national artists and actors. Themed “Rennais-Art,” the
weekend will explore fifteenth and sixteenth century’s art and history
with workshops, performances and special guests.
A first round of workshops precedes the renaissance-style feast for the kids,
which will take place Friday night and is followed by a dance with DJ Calvin
Nagy. Workshops will fill the remainder of the weekend beginning Saturday morning,
and include falconry, dance, clay art, paper making, and performance.
“This is the only program of its kind in the nation,” said Ginger
Head Gearheart, founder and executive director of the 21-year-old non-profit
that has reached over four million individuals with programming across the disciplines. “Some
of these children have never encountered another hearing-challenged person before.
We’ll introduce them to deaf role models and celebrate with over 500 other
hearing-challenged children-- a milestone opportunity, we believe.”
Headliners for this year’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing Weekend include actor
Ty Giordano, who has had roles in motion pictures such as The Family Stone,
and in various Broadway performances; Anthony Natale, who has appeared in Jerry
McGuire and Mr. Holland’s Opus, as well as multiple television series; “Maid” Martha
Hannah, a nationally-acclaimed medieval comedic actor, author, and speaker;
and Fred Beam, founder of all-male Deaf dance troupe “The Wild Zappers” and
director of the award-winning program Invisible Hands, Inc.
Established in 1987 in collaboration with the Kennedy Center for the Performing
Arts, the Fort Worth Independent School District, and the City of Fort Worth,
Imagination Celebration Fort Worth is an independent non-profit educational
and arts organization. Imagination Celebration creates and provides curriculum-related
arts/cultural educational experiences to students utilizing a network of professional
artists and cultural arts organizations. Since its inception, Imagination Celebration
has touched over four million students, their teachers and families with its
exceptional, award-winning programming. The Fort Worth group has been a model
for similar efforts around the world.
For more information about the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Weekend and about Fort
Worth’s Imagination Celebration, call 817-870-1141 or visit their website
www.icfw.org.
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