VICTORY
GARDENS THEATER WINS METLIFE FOUNDATION AWARD
FOR
EXCELLENCE IN INNOVATION AND ACCESS
CHICAGO, February 11, 2008 - Leaders of Chicago’s
Victory Gardens Theater Access Project proudly accepted the MetLife Foundation
Award for Excellence and Innovation in Access at the Association of Performing
Arts Presenters national awards ceremony, held January 15 in New York City.
The MetLife Foundation Award for Innovation in Access, which included a $10,000
cash award for the non-profit Victory Gardens,
honored the theater’s Access Project, a nationally recognized model outreach
effort committed to involving people with disabilities in all aspects of
theater, both on and off the stage.
The Arts
Presenters/MetLife Foundation Awards for Arts Access honors those performing
arts venues that demonstrate a depth and breadth of inclusion that permeates
every fiber of the organization - from planning and evaluation to mission,
leadership, budgeting, outreach and programming.
“These awards
demonstrate the outstanding achievements of our colleagues in the field, and
those who work tirelessly on our behalf to promote accessibility,” said Sandra
Gibson, President & CEO of Arts Presenters. “We salute Victory Gardens for
its tremendous creativity and inspiring dedication to the performing arts.”
Victory
Gardens Associate Artistic Director Sandy Shinner, and Access Project
Coordinator Mike Ervin, flew into New York
to accept the award on behalf of the theater. “We are grateful for the
important financial support as well as the increased recognition for the Access
Project,” said Ervin. "We've tried to create a model of access that,
as the award criteria say, 'permeates every fiber of the organization.'
From architectural design and audience development to artistic programming,
serving the disability community is a part of every decision we make. This
award will allow us to do bigger and better things."
Through
the Access Project, Victory
Gardens
is Chicago’s #1 provider
of barrier-free theater for persons with disabilities. Since taking over
the project 15 years ago, the Tony Award-honored Victory Gardens has grown to
be one of the nation’s earliest adopters of assistive services, including
providing Sign Language interpreted performances, captioned and audio-described
shows, large-print and Braille programs, pre-show Touch Tours of the theater
and set, TTY phones, and dedicated wheelchair seating in the company’s new
Biograph Theater mainstage. The Access Project also presents Crip Slam,
a popular series of performances, readings, films and other events that
promote, explore and celebrate disability culture.
Specifically,
the MetLife Foundation Award for Excellence and Innovation in Access honors “an
organization that has been constantly dedicated to the implementation and
evolution of its arts access strategies by the creation of programming or an
organization-wide tool or practice that has been developed as a response to new
technologies, recent demographic changes to a community or an on-going dialogue
with audiences concerned with arts access.”
The Association of Performing
Arts Presenters (Arts Presenters) is the largest national service and advocacy
organization for the performing arts, and is dedicated to bringing artists and
audiences together through presenting and touring. With over 1,900
members worldwide, Arts Presenters is committed to increasing community
participation, promoting global cultural exchange, and fostering an environment
for the performing arts to thrive. The performing arts presenting industry in
the U.S. reaches more than 300 million audience-goers each year and has a
national economic impact of more than $8.5 billion annual (the $9 billion is
not an economic impact figure; it’s the U.S. industry’s spending power only;
impact has not been measured but would be much higher). For more
information, visit www.artspresenters.org.
To
receive updates on all Access Project activities and future Crip Slam events,
subscribe to the Access Project Newsletter by calling 773.549.5788 ext 2131
(voice), 773.871.0682 (TTY), or sending email to information@victorygardens.org.
Originally
developed by Remains Theater with funding from the Wallace Foundation, the
Victory Gardens Theater Access Project receives leadership support from Kraft
Foods, alongside additional support from The Chicago Community Trust, the Harry
S. Black & Allon Fuller Fund, Daniel Efner, and the Samuel A. Burstein
Family Foundation, as well as numerous individuals.
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