The Lifting Our Families and Cultures ParadePresented by Spiral Q and the 5th Grade Class of Feltonville Intermediate

FRIDAY MAY 22, 1PM
At Feltonville Intermediate
B St. & Wyoming St.

For a second consecutive year, Spiral Q Puppet Theater is conducting a groundbreaking artistic residency with every fifth-grader at Feltonville Intermediate with the goal ofreturning arts programming to the fifth-grade curriculum, while building a sense of community within the school.We invite you to the streets of North Philadelphia for the finale of the Lifting Our Cultures and Families project to witness the innovative work done by students to investigate their cultures together.

At 1:00PM on Friday, May 22nd, the entire fifth grade, alongside their teachers, families, administrators and the larger Feltonville community will turn out to show off giant puppets and impressive artwork made for the project finale.

In Fall 2008, first-year principal Lisa Matthews of Feltonville Intermediate committed to a second year of the project, continuing and deepening the relationship forged between her school and Spiral Q, during the previous year’s pilot program. In this innovative partnership, artists from Spiral Q bring their unique blend of arts education and community-building techniques into every fifth-grade classroom.

“Each classroom spent the semester focusing on a particular community member, be itteenage boys or elder women. The point is to think about thepeople we know in our lives and how they contribute to the community. The love, energy and connections our students shared through their stories is truly demonstrated in the puppets they’ve created together,” says Spiral Q teaching artist Rose Levine.

This landmark educational project reflects Spiral Q’s commitment to empower and mobilize the individuals and communities of Philadelphia by using art as a tool for social change and personal expression.

Student Artwork

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Quotes from Students

"Art is a creation by someone. For example, art is music, drawings, poems, stories, and sculptures. Without art there would be no music or houses, or even buildings. Art is important because we are art, the world is art, and not only that, without art we would be nothing. Nothing would be real. There would be no such thing as humans, dinosaurs, the sun or even food. I love art and I hope art will live forever."

"What I am looking forward to is paiting (painting) the puppets because it is like the heads transform because first it was cardboard, then with papier mache, Finally like relly (really) real people."

"I like to help people I know don't know a lot inglish pero I know I can help people."

"In Spiral Q I feel like I can stand up and talk instead of being shy all the time, like I am trying to stay out of sight."

"The parade will bring respect to the school, the people will know that this school has talent, art, and other kinds of things. I am excited about the parade because we can show off what our art is about and what things can be used as."

"What I think the parade will bring to the Feltonville community is love. Love because some poor and sick people don’t have homes or friends and like you said Ms. Rose anybody can join."

"Also what I am looking forward is having a great perade (parade) and people watching. Also why I am looking forward to it because I want to show my mom that I am not shy to do a perade (parade) with our puppets we did."

"I think spiral is that is very nice and I can express my feeling there. In spiral Q I have a puppet named Truth. She wants for people to stop drugs and she wants the best for people. I love Spiral Q and I'm looking forward to going their (there) again."

"I like working in a group because if we all put our minds to it we can do something really great together. Something difficult working in a group is that sometimes we don't agree with each other. Then in the end we all put out ideas to it and make a wonderful thing."

Pictures

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Click here for more Feltonville parade photos!

Click here for photos of last year's parade!

Download the press release

Funders

This project is made possible in part by support from National Endowment for the Arts, Connelly Foundation, J. Leon Lockard Trust through the PNC Charitable Trust, Lincoln Financial Foundation, Lumpkin Family Foundation, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Philadelphia Arts & Education Partnership, Picasso Project of the Public Citizens for Children and Youth, School District of Philadelphia, and The Philadelphia Foundation’s Fund for Children.

 

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