NVCC Announces Virtual Arts Festival

WATERBURY, CT - NVCC has announced the schedule for its annual International Center for the Arts (ICA) Festival. A college tradition for the last 5 years, the ICA was launched by NVCC’s CEO, Dr. Lisa Dresdner, when she was the Associate Dean of Liberal Arts & Behavioral/Social Sciences (LABSS). Its mission is to connect students and communities to an expanded world that expresses itself through the arts. The ICA extends the reach of the college to become a significant gathering place for discovery, learning, and engagement about traditional art forms and contemporary expressions that reflect the human experience.

B.L. Baker, current Associate Dean of LABSS, commented on this year’s theme, Crossing Borders: Reconnection. “This academic year, 2020-2021, has been challenging for each of us in different ways, filled with feelings of isolation and a desire to connect with others. Our hope for Reconnection has never been more profound. The ICA believes in the power of the arts to enrich the intellectual, cultural, and personal lives of our students and communities." The virtual festival, scheduled to run from April 27 – 29, begins with an invitation to share your poetry with us! Kicking off the festival with a Poetry Slam on both Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, April 27 and 28 from 9:30am – 10:40am, acclaimed poet, Vincent Toro, will present his latest spoken word pieces focused on the theme of Reconnection. During the Slam, Professor Steve Parlato (ENG and ART) will read poems that connect to his original artwork that grew out of last year’s events. We welcome all voices, so please share your poems at “A Spoken Word” (via WebEx). Click HERE to join Tuesday’s event or HERE to join Wednesday’s event.

On Tuesday, April 27, 2021, from 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm., the festival will host a Bookmaking Workshop (via TEAMS) for students. During this bookmaking workshop students will learn how to make an accordion book. Each participant will receive a FREE kit of all the supplies needed and will learn how to measure, fold, and glue to create a blank book. After the workshop is complete, participants may fill their books with images and text based on the theme of 2021 International Center for the Arts Festival. When the ICA Festival returns to campus spring 2022, anyone with a completed book will be invited to participate in an exhibition. Students can contact Karen Blake, Director of Student Activities, KBlake@nvcc.commnet.edu to reserve you’re their FREE materials kits. Reservations will be accepted until the materials run out! Students are encouraged to sign up ASAP!

The Human Library® will be a highlight on Wednesday, April 28, from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm. During this event, people become “books” and reading is a conversation that creates an exciting opportunity for our community to connect with and learn from each other by sharing unique experiences, stories, and knowledge. In so doing, this event invites our community to practice empathy as they hear from others who have faced and overcome hardships. Readers may check out Human Books for conversations to celebrate our differences, break down barriers, encourage new ideas, and strengthen our community. Submit your application to be a book today!

Reader registration will be available here after April 19. Deadline to Register is Friday, April 23, 2021.Submit your application to be a book today! Deadline to register to be a book is Friday, April 23, 2021.

There is magic to do on Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 7:30 pm when the curtain rises on opening night for the musical comedy, PIPPIN. In this 2013 Tony Award winning musical, including Best Musical Revival, a prince learns the true meaning of glory, love, and war in this unforgettable Broadway masterpiece. With a delightful score from TONY (Wicked), Grammy, and Oscar winner, Stephen Schwartz, Pippin is the story of one young man's journey to be extraordinary. PIPPIN runs April 29 – May 1. For tickets and information: www.showtix4u.com/events/NVCC

The ICA finale features the Reconnection Collection, an archive of original art pieces, music, dance, poetry, film, and video that showcases performances by two of NVCC’s previous Fulbright Scholars-in-Residence, Felipe Karam (2016) and Aguibou Bougobali Sanou (2018) as well as other ICA events and performances. The Reconnection Collection will remain open and available to students, faculty, and staff from April 26 through May 7. Click the link to enter the archives and explore and enjoy the assembled collection.

Click HERE to access the archive.