Very special arts days Archive
Sat., June 1, 2004: VSA Days at the Sacramento Zoo
Seven schools (Alice Burney, Ethel Phillips, Caroline Wenzel, John Cabrillo, Sutterville, and O.W. Erlewine) performed at the Sacramento Zoo to the delight of visitors from the general public. VSAS kids staged theatre art, Aztec dancing, Hip Hop dancing, rock-n-roll and drumming.
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"We need to show kids how to reach out and push out," says Kate Muir, the artist. "Trying to make things in miniature is impossible, because kids see everything life-size. So we had live chickens running around our classroom. We made armature from newspapers, and made clay move with hands. It was pure impressionism, we did not linger, we left our fingerprints on clay. Some of the work was made by groups of kids, and I did not notice any difference between special kids and regular kids - everybody worked together and had fun!"
We want to thank Trader Joe's for sponsoring drinks and snacks at the concurrent exhibit of ceramic chickens (created by Leonardo Da Vinci school students).
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"Dance is for healing, unity and sharing. Special kids and regular kids dance, share and laugh together. Dancing in circle brings them in touch with the very foundation of our existence: light, planets, generations, everything comes in circles. It is very rewarding to open kids eyes and to challenge them."
-Jesse Ortiz-Ocelotl, Quetzalcoatl Citlalli, Aztec Dance Group
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"We talked a lot about dreams, and kids were sharing their dreams with each other. From their improvisation, the story of dancing and monsters came about. Then we practiced for 1 hr each week, whcih was a lot of fun..."
-Shakiri Hudson, VSAS artist about theatre performance "Dancing Dreams"
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"What is the reson to play drums? It makes things in life tolerable. Drumming is a multitasking art form, it helps to teach discipline, self control, tecm work and camaradery. Working with kids is such an awsome experience. Perhaps, some day one of these kids will become a drummer!"
-VSAS artist Kevin Goings, about the O.W. Erlewine drumming group
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