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| February 10, 2006 Barnstable Patriot |  |
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For art s
sake
I
N
T
H
P
A
R
T
r*
Town squeezes
creative juices
from citizens
By Paul Gauvin
pgauvin@barnstablepatriot.com
PAUL GAUVIN PHOTO
HIGH ART - Marylyn Rauschle of Hyannis reaches to jot down her ideas of public
art in Hyannis while Jeannette Chilli of Hyannis looks on. They participated in an
art charette Monday night at the Barnstable Senior Center.
"Fortunately,art isacommunity
effort "
That was poet Allen Ginsburg's
view in "Early Fifties, Early Six-
ties" and it was the Barnstable
town administration'sview Mon-
day night as it asked ordinary
citizens to help generate ideas for
publicart on HyannisMain Street,
gateways, the notorious rotaries
and Inner Harbor area.
More than 50 people attended
what is known as a "charette"-a
collaborative planning process
that harnesses the talents and
energies of all interested par-
ties - at the Barnstable Senior
Center 's expansive hall
And harness it was as staff from
the town's Growth Management
Department headed by Ruth Weil
generated interest by showing
photos of public art around the
world then prodding participants
to let fly their creative juices.
Suggestions incorporated art in
its broad sense to include shapes,
forms,indigenous materials, loca-
tions and a potpourri of ideas,
some of which bordered as much
on entertainment and marketing
as in art.
For example, Jeannette Chilli
of Hyannis suggested permanent
stone game tables upon which to
play chess or checkers as a way
of attracting friends and strang-
ers to the downtown areas for a
long spell.
Dorothy Poritz of Hyannis said
the town might consider artistic
use of beach grasses blended
with rock and stone and sand on
the banks of the Walkway to the
Sea to create a more homegrown
gateway linking the retail area ,
the commercial waterfront and
beaches along Ocean Street. She
also suggested windsurfing as a
common theme for the village.
Bill Lord,a marathon runner
turned budding artist who just
returned from Disney World with
his grandchild and family,contrib -
uted a host of ideas and said the
village needs one large, unique
identifying work of art that "when
you see it you know immediately
where you are"
Taking up on that suggestion ,
Elizabeth Hunter pictured a large
waterfront kinetic sculpture us-
ing wind and water to power it.
Participants were split in four
groups to brainstorm other ideas
linked to seven major downtown
areas. That generated calls for tall
ships, a memorial containing the
WWII PT-109 patrol boat skip-
pered by a young President John
F. Kennedy, banners,murals ,
arches, play stations sidewalk
drawings and hop-scotch designs
for kids to skip along while walk-
ing along Main Street, and public
studio space where people could
watch various artists paint or
sculpt or make jewelry or vari-
ous crafts.
Idea contributors were invited
to write suggestions on large
sheets of paper posted along the
walls. That too generated a host
of ideas, including an amusing
"no more statues."
Locations identified by Kate
Kennen,a landscape architect
employed in the Growth Division,
included Main and Ocean Street,
the rotaries, Sherman Square,
the entrance to Hyannis from
Yarmouth on Route 28, the 500
Block, the Old Colony, South and
Ocean Streets 5-way intersection
at Aselton Park and an empty
lot across from Hyport Brewery
that formerly housed a defunct
gasoline station.
The Growth Department will
correlate findings and issue a
report later. The charrette was
underwritten by the Arts Foun-
dation of Cape Cod, Cape Cod
Economic Development Council
and Regional Economic Develop-
ment Pilot Program.
P.S. The fresh fruit,veggie
platter, coffee and cookies were
delicious.
For More Information
Web sites for those interested in
bringing music education
to the schools:
National Education Association,
www.nea.org
Music in Schools Today (MUST),
www.mustcreate.org
National Endowment for the Arts,
www.arts.endow.gov
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,
www.kennedy-center,org/
Dancing at Lughnasa steps
brightly onto Harwich stage
By John Walters
jwatters@barnstablepatriot.com
Projected on a scrim behind the
wonderful cottage interior of the
Harwich Junior Theater's produc-
tion of Dancing at Lughnasa, is an
intricate Celtic knot.
The imageis averyfitting symbol
ofthe manythreads woven together
in this Tony Award-winning Irish
drama by playwright Brian Friel.
Dancing at Lughnasa,anancient
pagan harvest festival, on the sur-
face couldjust bethebleak,austere
story oftheMundy family,abrood of
five spinster sisters,their eccentric
missionary uncle and a son born
out of wedlock by the youngest of
the siblings.
But beneath the surface,the story
draws you in deeper like a sinking
step into a marshy peat bog.
It unveilsthe stubborn strength
and stick togetherness, no matter
the hardship, of the Irish women.
It portrays their unyielding com-
mitment to their Catholic faith
and strong sense of family, whilst
the men in their lives take every
opportunity to break away from
a life that offers little reward by
staying at home.
Directed byJulieAllenHamilton,
the play follows aseamless arc with
much detailpaid to the authentica-
tions of the period and lifestyle of
its characters
Friel uses the son, Michael, to
recall his family and childhood in
the summer of 1936, from the van-^
tage point of man about 30. Day5 1
Wallace walks the tightrope nicely
between both narrator and invis-
CONTINUED ON PAGE C:2
Connect with The Bard
in Cotuit for free i
Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404
Rte. 28, Cotuit, announces The
Cotuit Actors' Circle for Training
in Shakespeare, a free program
for the community.
The Cotuit Actors' Circle for
Trainingin Shakespeare is a series
ofworkshopsdesignedfor actors of
allagesandlevelsofexperiencewho
want to explore and understand
Shakespeare as actors.
The workshops willbe taught by
Victoria McKee, who holds a BA
in Theatre studies from Brandeis
and an MA from The Shakespeare
Institute in England, where she is
also a Fellow of the Royal Society
of Arts.
Although each workshop will
have its own theme, the series
approaches Shakespeare's plays
as theater rather than literature,
celebrating these great workswrit-
ten by an actor for actors.
The series kicks off Sunday, Feb
12from noon to 3p.m.withaValen-
tine's weekend afternoon of learn-
ing to love Shakespeare by A
looking at "Shakespeare ^k
On Love. " A
Instructor Victoria ^^M
McKee will demystify V
The Bard and offer an ^^
actor's guide to exploring
his work.
The Series continues Monday,
March 6 from 7-10 p.m Monday,
April 24 7-10 p.m. and Sunday,
May 14 noon to 3 p.m.
The program is free and .
open to the public.Please ^Jg
call Cotuit Center for Jk
the Arts at 508-428- M
0669 to register.
^^^^ S
You regis- ^k
ter for asmany ^k
sessions as
you like, in-
dividually or
for the entire
series.
arts@barnstablepatriot.com
If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musi-
cian. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in
music. I see my life in terms of music. I get most joy out
of life in music.
- Albert Einstein
"Imagine an education without music and the arts,"
exhorted the Barnstable High School Music Director
Michael Smith.
However outrageous such a thought (never mind an ed-
ucation) would be, it seems the growing global economy
is forcing U.S.schools toward a science- and math-based
curriculum. Anticipating this change, we must remember
the importance of music and the arts in the schools.
In his State of the Union address last Tuesday, Presi-
dent Bush announced an addendum to his No Child Left
Behind Act -the America's Competitiveness Initiative
(ACI) -to increase funding in the math and science de-
partments of schools nationwide.
"Our greatest advantage in the world has alwaysbeen
our educated, hardworking, ambitious people, and we are
going to keep that edge," said President Bush.
He continued with an explanation of his agenda, "We
encourage innovation throughout our economy and to
give our nation's childrena firm grounding in math and science."
What this means for the nation's, in particular
Barnstable High School's, music and arts programis
yet to be determined. But history has proven that music
and arts programs are the first to suffer when funding is
re-allocated to the desires of the powers that be, which
unfortunately,have rarely been in favor of a firm ground-
ing in music and the arts.
A week before the President announced the "ACI," Mi-
chael Smith talked about some of the improvements the
BHS music program has experienced recently
"They were able to remove the $300 play-an-instrument
fee that was previously being charged to the students.
We've added a class on the history of rock music and
another on music technology," said Smith with a proud
sense of accomplishment. "And we've been able to add
another music teacher to encourage diversity in the
music program."
The "ACI"willlead to 70,000 new math and science
teachers over the next five years in order to give students
a better understanding of the economic world surround-
ing them. In fairness to the President, this initiative is
justifiable.The growing global economy presents unique
challenges to the U.S. students of today and leaders of
tomorrow.
With India and China closing the economic superpower
gap each year, there is much evidence to suggest that
these countries' focus on math and science education
is integralto their economic successes. And there is no
denying the importance of competition.
Staying competitive in the global economy is para-
mount to the continued quest for the American ideal -a
society where we think and do, within the walls of justice
and democracy, what we want.
What are the repercussions of such a strong initiative,
though? What willour students lose as the math and sci-
ence curriculum grows bigger and stronger?
National Education Association President Reg Weaver
drew attention to some important issues surrounding the
funding of a wide-scaleinitiative such as the "ACI"in a
video release on the NEA Web site.
"The law hasn't worked for elementary schools, and it
won't work for high schools. The current massive under-
funding not only falls short of supporting the existing
law, but leaves little doubt that the proposed expansion
willnot succeed," said an unsupportive Weaver.To add
more fuel to the local fire, many Cape schools have been
disproportionately funded because of the Chapter 70
disparity between median income and property values
across the state.
Regardless of the politics behind both President Weav-
er's and President Bush's words, there continues to be
significant problems in the development of education
across the country.Recognizing the inherent difficulties
that come withmanaging a nation's education, certain
principles must be established.Among those principles,
science and math should certainly be included. Music
and the arts, however, cannot suffer.
In the words of Michael Smith, "The study of the arts
has always been a significant part of the curriculum.
Students need to experience the arts because the arts
are the way that people express themselves. It's a differ-
ent kind of problem solving. Students are using the arts
to understand their culture and make sense of the world
around them."
Indeed Mr. Smith. Indeed.
i (fa M MUSIC By Nicholas .jHfr