Philadelphia holds a large amount of art culture, however, a lot of it goes unnoticed and hidden within the city.  Some of the lesser-known arts establishments were created by everyday people who had a love for art and became recognized.  The arts culture of Philadelphia is not just limited to the Philadelphia Art Museum, but can be found elsewhere in the city.  Some of the lesser appreciated arts establishments are, but not limited to, The Barnes Foundation, The Philadelphia Metropolitan Opera House, and Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens.

1. The Barnes Foundation

The Barnes Foundation is an art gallery in Philadelphia.  All of the art belonged to Albert C. Barnes Who started collecting artwork in 1902.  In 1922 he received a letter from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania establishing his art collection as an educational institute.  The museum used to be located in Merion, Pennsylvania, but has been moved to Philadelphia, leaving the old location as an arboretum.

“The mission of the Barnes is to promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts and horticulture.

Our founder, Dr. Albert C. Barnes, believed that art had the power to improve minds and transform lives. Our diverse educational programs are based on his teachings and one-of-a-kind collections—both his art holdings in Philadelphia and the rare trees, flowers, and other plants at the Barnes Arboretum.”

The Barnes Foundation now also holds art classes alongside its many art galleries.

2. The Philadelphia Metropolitan Opera House

The Philadelphia Opera House was built in 1908 and was known for its wonderful acoustics, serving as a recording studio for the Philadelphia Orchestra.  It holds the record for the largest performance stage and the largest theatrical auditorium. It has served many purposes over the years: a movie theater, a sports arena, a gospel concert hall, and a church.  Now it showcases artists, operas, and speakers.

“Located on North Broad Street, The Met Philadelphia, the former Philadelphia Metropolitan Opera House, is now open. Originally built in 1908 by opera impresario Oscar Hammerstein, The Met Philadelphia is currently undergoing a $56 million restoration in partnership with Live Nation, Eric Blumenfeld and Holy Ghost Headquarters to transform the historic theater into the crown jewel of North Broad Street’s renaissance and you can be part of the action.”

3. Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

The Philadelphia Magic Gardens describes itself as: “Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens (PMG) is an immersive mixed media art environment that is completely covered with mosaics. The creator, Isaiah Zagar, used handmade tiles, bottles, bicycle wheels, mirror, and international folk art to chronicle his life and influences. The space is made up of two indoor galleries and a bi-level outdoor sculpture garden.

As a nonprofit museum, PMG celebrates art in its many forms through community outreach, public programs, hands-on activities, exhibitions, and tours. We welcome everyone to explore the space and embrace the possibility of self-expression.”

This very artsy location is magical because of its use of everyday objects to create a beautiful garden.  It is worth walking through.

4. The Rodin Museum

This museum is not about paintings, but rather the art of sculpture.  “As one of the most revered destinations on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the Rodin Museum offers a verdant, intimate setting in which to enjoy some of the world’s most renowned masterpieces of sculpture. Learn about Auguste Rodin and his large body of work, find out how this extraordinary museum found a home in Philadelphia, and see the collection displayed in new ways.”

“The Museum was the gift of movie-theater magnate Jules Mastbaum (1872–1926) to the city of Philadelphia. Mastbaum began collecting works by Rodin in 1923 with the intent of founding a museum to enrich the lives of his fellow citizens. Within just three years, he had assembled the largest collection of Rodin’s works outside Paris, including bronze castings, plaster studies, drawings, prints, letters, and books. In 1926, Mastbaum commissioned French architects Paul Cret and Jacques Gréber to design the museum building and gardens. Unfortunately, the collector did not live to see his dream realized, but his widow, Etta Wedell Mastbaum honored his commitment to the city, and the Museum opened on November 29, 1929. Murals in the museum were executed by the painter Franklin C. Watkins.”

      On April 12 and April 13, Eastern University’s graduating Dance Majors performed their Senior Thesis Dance Concert.  The four graduates were Neeka Skelton, Gabriella Williams, Alexandra Swank and Emily Pastin.  Each of these seniors choreographed a selection of dances.

      The first quarter of dances were choreographed by Skelton.  She titled her section “Perichoresis,” which is a Greek word that describes the relationship of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Her selection of songs were very upbeat.  All of the dancers wore yellow sundresses and most of the dances were performed by a group, typically with three dancers. There was a song for each part of The Trinity, and these dances contained repeating motions.  This showed the interconnection of all three.

      The second quarter of dances were choreographed by Williams.  There was a stark change between Skelton’s dances and Williams’s dances.  She titled her section, “A Time For Everything.”  The costumes for her section were more plain and sophisticated.  They wore simple black and blue dresses.  She incorporated background lighting to show silhouettes of the dancers at times.  She had a mix of slow songs and then quicker songs.  She had a Spanish-inspired dance in the middle of her selection that added an upbeat twist in her music. Her last two songs were “Amazing Grace” and “Eternity.”  The first dance was performed by a group and brought a Christian theme into her mix.  The last one just featured her and was a beautiful finish to her section.

      Swank’s section of music contained a theme for refusing family dysfunction and domestic violence.  Her first two songs showed happy relationships with couples of dancers dancing with each other in an emotional and caring way.  However, the theme changed in the next song where the dancers danced around one girl and imitated physical abuse.  This dance showed couples going from dancing to fighting with each other.  It showed the emotional toll of physical abuse and put the audience on edge.  The song “Resilience” was a solo dance by Swank herself.  Rather than music, it was a spoken word recording about divorce and how it changes everything, but how one will survive through the hardship.  The last song was upbeat and hopeful among the emotional rollercoaster of the previous dances.  It was titled “You Are Enough” and brought a message of self-acceptance.

      The last section was by Pastin and was titled “Life is but a Dream.”  This series of dances appeared to be happening in someone’s dreams, as the first song was a brief couple of seconds.  The lighting was dark and there were stars lit up above the dancer.  It showed them falling asleep.  The song after this introduction was a mix of ballet dancers and street dancers.  The ballet dancers wore dresses and danced eloquently, while the street dancers wore jeans and sneakers and did modern, popular dances around them.  It was humorous and could definitely have been the result of crazy dreams.  The next dance began with another introduction.  This was a short couple seconds of jazz music danced to by Williams.  It was the introduction to my favorite dance number of the whole concert. Pastin, Skelton and rest of the graduates did a tap dance piece to “Settle Down.”  It was a very fun piece where they used the rhythm of their tap shoes and clapped to the music.  It was a very dynamic, intricate dance that amazed the audience.  It really showed how hardworking and talented the graduates are.

      The concert finished with all of the dancers coming on stage and bowing to the audience.  The four seniors were the last to bow, and it was a bittersweet finish to the concert.  The well thought out themes for each of the sections and the messages that each of the dances delivered were a display of the passion and drive that they each brought into their years at Eastern.  The fact that they not only chose their songs and themes themselves, but also choreographed each and every dance is incredible.  They really showed their unique personalities and professionalism in their last dance concert.  I am really happy that there was a large turnout to this concert, as these girls really deserve appreciation for the hours they put into their dances.

      Eastern University is lucky enough to have a wide variety of clubs that meet each week on campus.  Joining clubs is a way to meet new people and meet others who share a like passion for the arts.  Eastern’s wide selection of creative arts clubs gives students an opportunity to express their feelings and imagination through the different art forms. Although there are many clubs, I will focus on five that you should definitely check out:

1.  Precious Movements

      The Precious Movements Club is a women’s group that acts as an outlet for spiritual emotions and feelings.  The women in this club channel this through dance of all sorts and focus on the beautiful motions of the body.  This group is spectacular in how it allows the freedom of emotion and creative dance.  This club meets from 7:15p.m. to 9:15pm on Sundays in the Dance Studio.

2. Inklings Literary Magazine

      Inklings is a club on campus that creates a yearly magazine that features creative writing, photography and art.  This club works with reviewing submissions, editing and layout for their magazine.  This creative collaboration works towards the final product throughout the year.  They meet on Thursdays from 8p.m. to 9p.m. in HHC 222.

3. Society of Art and Illustration

      The Society of Art and Illustration is a club that is focused solely on coming together once a week to create art.  This includes all sorts of art like watercolor, sketching, painting, etc.  This club requires no previous art experiences and allows anyone to come and join as they please.  They also provide art materials for those who do not bring any.  They meet on Tuesdays from 7p.m. to 9p.m. in the Gough Great Room.

4. Transformed

      Transformed is a club that focuses on drama.  For one semester this club rehearses skits with Christian meaning behind them.  In the second semester, they travel to different churches to perform their skits and ultimately to remind people of Christian truths and inspire others to seek God.  This club meets on Sundays from 8p.m. to 10p.m. in the Gough Great Room.

5.  ETHELS

     Lastly, ETHELS is a swing dance club on campus that teaches and practices different types of swing dance in a relaxed environment.  This is a very unique and exciting club because once you get the hang of it, swing dancing is a lot of fun.  A swing dancing club can be hard to find on other campuses, so everyone should take advantage of learning this type of dance.  This club meets on Thursdays from 8:30p.m. to 10:30p.m. in the Gough Great Room.

      On Feb. 28, Eastern University will be hosting a one-woman performance called “Uninvited Girl.”  While a one-woman play seems unusual, this play first premiered in 2016 and has been performed for two years now.  It was first performed shortly after the presidential election at Christ Church Neighborhood House in Philadelphia.  It was part of the First Person Arts Festival.  The First Person Arts Festival has been held in Philadelphia for 18 years now. 

      They celebrate storytelling and the power of individual people.  Their website states , “We are First Person Arts, a Philadelphia nonprofit organization that celebrates the power of the personal. Our storytelling, social impact, and festival programs reinforce our mission: everyone has a story to tell, and sharing these stories connects us with each other and the world.”  Nimisha Ladva performed for this festival to a sold-out audience and shares her personal experiences through her acting.

      This play is bound to be emotional and empowering.  Ladva delves into scenes from her life, the humorous, scary, unjust and life-changing.  The description given by the Philadelphia Commons Institute states, “This solo-performance play written and performed by Nimisha Ladva, directed by Edward Sobel, tells Ladva’s personal story — ‘growing up in England as the only non-white child in my local public school, my family’s move to the United States, the cultural clashes that ensued (including my choice to marry outside my ethnic community), our period of living as undocumented immigrants, and finally, the legal court case that allowed my family and me to become legal residents and which put us on the path to US citizenship.’” 

      This play has been going strong for two years now, and for good reasons.  This is a true story for both Ladva and for many immigrants in the world.  It is a terrifying thought for someone to be taken out of the culture they know and love and to be placed in another, without any sort of guidance or warning.  Everything from language to dress to etiquette, can be different, and getting used to these things might take a long time.  Ladva shines a light on the difference between cultures and the ignorance that others have to people of a different background. 

     I personally cannot imagine how scared and how humiliated she might have felt at times.  I hope that I and many others take something out of this upcoming play and become more open and helpful to those who are of different backgrounds, as the United States is seeing more and more immigrants from other countries.   

      The performance will be held in McInnis Auditorium on Feb. 28 from 7pm-10pm.  It is free for both students and community members.  After the performance there will be a discussion with the play’s creators.  It is wonderful that Eastern University is able to host so many empowering guests, with the help from the Campolo Institute for Applied Research, Students Advocating for Gender Eqaulity (SAGE), and Eastern’s Political Science Department.  I encourage everyone who is able to attend this event, whether it be because Ladva’s story is relatable, or whether it is eye-opening to the difficult lives that many live.

      The Eastern University Dance Department has recently hosted its dance concert, “Before the Thaw,”  on Feb. 1 and 2 in McInnis Auditorium.  Although this concert featured dance students of all levels, it contained many solos and duets performed by the seniors.

      The first set of dances were done to the music of Nina Simone, a singer and songwriter of the Civil Rights Movement.  These songs were choreographed by guest choreographer, Michelle Jones Wurtz.  The Pottstown Dance Theatre is where Michelle currently works, and on their website they state, “Michelle holds a BFA in Dance from the University of the Arts as well as an MPA in Non-profit Management from Strayer University.  She studied with Barbara Sandanato who was trained by George Balanchine; Judith Jamison, former lead dancer of the Alvin Ailey Company and Milton Myers who was also a lead dancer at Ailey and now serves as head of the Contemporary Division of the world famous Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. 

      Michelle began her professional career during her junior year when she started dancing for Group Motion song.  The songs “Feeling Good,” “Spell on You,” “Strange Fruit,” and “Down and Out,” were solo dances, showing the raw emotion and feeling behind Nina Simone’s music.  The song “Strange Fruit” contained lyrics about the violence and the death that slaves faced in the South.  Kelsey Patrick did a fantastic job of displaying the misery behind the song through her dance, involving movements of pain and falling to the ground.  On the contrary, the song “Feeling Good” contained lyrics of happiness and freedom.  Megan Schultz conveyed this joy through a more upbeat, cheerful dance.

      The fifth Nina Simone song was “Sinner Man,” which a group of dancers did in black leotards and wrap skirts of different colors.  This was to allude to the wrap skirts of the African culture that are often colorful, flowing and whimsical.  This tribute to Nina Simone and the Civil Rights Movement was very fitting for Black History Month and gave the audience a look into African hardships, history and culture through dance and costume.

      After the Nina Simone songs came the song “You Say” by Lauren Daigle.  This is a powerful worship song that brings hope to the weak.  The song is about how it is easy to feel down about oneself and feel inadequate.  Although one feels like this, in God’s eyes, all of mankind is strong and loved.  God makes each individual with a purpose, and each person is able to be important and strong if they believe in Him.  This song is very encouraging and its meaning was enforced through Mikaela Lardarello and Laura Schoenhals’ duet dance.  The last song of the concert was also faith-based.  It was a song by Mandisa that focused on faithfulness in the midst of hardships.  This song was danced by Emily Bronkema and Hannah Santiago.

      Stephen Welsh, the director of Eastern’s dance and performance was also a guest choreographer for the excerpt from “Suite Aviation.”  This duet dance featured Janet Pila Marini and faculty member Caroline Butcher.  Stephen Welsh has been a choreographer in New York City and Philadelphia for decades.  He has danced with and worked with numerous choreographers and has received the Rockefeller Foundation Grant, A PCA Grant, a Five-county Cultural Arts Grand and a Pew Foundation-founded audience development project.  He also currently presents work at the American College Dance Festival and is a member of the Philly Fringe Fest professional repertory company.

      The Dance Club was selling items during the intermission to fundraise for the annual American College Dance Association (ACDA) Conference.  This is a yearly conference where colleges around the United States gather and have an opportunity to perform for an audience other than their own school.  On the ACDA website they state,  “The American College Dance Association’s primary focus is to support and promote the wealth of talent and creativity that is prominent throughout college and university dance departments.

      ACDA’s sponsorship of regional conferences and the national dance festival provides the venue for students and faculty to engage in three days of performances, workshops, panels, and master classes taught by instructors from around the region and country. The conferences also provide the unique opportunity for students and faculty to have their dance works adjudicated by a panel of nationally recognized dance professionals in an open and constructive forum.”  This is a very good opportunity for Eastern to show their hard work and talent for other colleges to see.  This is a great opportunity and hopefully their fundraising is successful so that they can take advantage of this event.

      Sources: ACDA, Pottstowndancetheatre.com

      On Sunday, October 21, there was a Tri-County Concerts Association emerging artists concert.  This series is dedicated to showcasing young, talented musicians.  On Sunday, clarinetist, Narek Arutyunian, performed a series of folk-inspired pieces in McInnis auditorium.  He was accompanied by pianist, Christopher Goodpasture.  Although Tri-County Concerts Association considers him to be an ‘upcoming artist’, Narek Arutyunian has traveled all over the world performing clarinet pieces.  He has traveled to Australia, Asia and Europe, as well as all over the United States.

      Narek was born in Armenia but was raised in Moscow, Russia.  He graduated from The Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music in 2018.   He currently lives in New York City, but he travels a lot for his music career.  The clarinet that he plays was a gift from Vladimir Spivakov, a famous Russian violinist and conductor of chamber music.

       At the concert on Sunday, he played pieces by Schumann, Bartok, Manuel de Falla, Brahms and Schoenfield.  Before playing pieces by each composer, he gave a brief history of the composer’s life while composing their folk pieces and why he chose to play them. Narek expressed his passion for folk music for clarinet, as the clarinet is universally an instrument that represents each culture’s folk music.  Not only did Arutyunian play folk music from well-known composers, but he actually arranged some of the pieces that he performed.  Some of the compositions were meant for other instruments and Arutyunian decided that it would sound good for clarinet.  Arranging a piece for another instrument is hard work, and it is commendable that Arutyunian did this himself.

       Folk music on clarinet is unique in the fact that it has a broad range of tempo and pitch.  The songs that Arutyunian played were slow at times, like “Nana” in the Suite Populaire Espagnole by Manuel de Falla and “Pe loc” in the Romanian Folk Dances by Bartok.  They then became quick and upbeat at others, like “Vivace” by Brahms and the Five Pieces in Folk Style by Schumann.  All of the pieces that he performed had a wide range of pitches from low to very, very high pitched notes.  Performing these pieces, especially the quick ones, involved a lot of coordination and subtle signs between Arutyunian and Goodpasture, his piano accompanist.  The unpredictable tempo needed to be kept up between the clarinet and piano to create unity in sound.  They managed this very well through eye contact and head nods. This showed a lot of skill in working as a team, especially as two solo musicians.

      Arutyunian’s accompanist, Christopher Goodpasture, was just as talented.  While not being the featured artist in this concert, he still proved to be very skilled and passionate about the folk music being played.  He is a graduate of Yale University and The Juilliard School.  He has performed all over the U.S. and has collaborated with many musicians.  He will soon release an album called Pollination.  While he served just as an accompanist on Sunday, Arutyunian decided last-minute that he wanted Goodpasture to perform a solo piece after the intermission.  This was a humble gesture, as Goodpasture  is also a talented solo musician and was kind enough to serve as an accompanist for this occasion.

      On February 3, 2019, Alexander Hersh, a cellist who also performs for the Tri-County Concerts Associated for upcoming musicians, will be performing at Eastern’s McInnis Auditorium. There is no doubt that he will also successfully show his skill in music and amaze the crowd with his talent as a young musician.

      Eastern University is proud to introduce Dr. Steven Ford as the new head of the music department, which is seeing new and exciting changes in its program. Dr. Ford comes with much experience within the professional world of music production and is happy to pass on his life experiences and lessons.  He is originally from Philadelphia, PA, but has traveled  and stayed in places all over the United States while on tour. He was a pastor’s son and was raised going to church, which formed his love for church music. His family members are all musicians and he grew up with a passion for music. He has taken his love for music and has created a career out of it “through hard work and dedication.” He has become a well known writer and producer and has performed all over the world. He is married and has a son and an adorable teddy bear dog. Dr. Ford brings joy, passion and love to the Eastern University music department and is bringing all sorts of ideas and experience to continue its growth and advancement.

      While Dr. Ford admits that his promotion within the music department was unexpected, he said “that it is God’s divine will for his life and an honor that he had never expected to receive.”

        He is very grateful to everyone who has helped him and who has made this opportunity possible. He has known Dr. Ron Matthews for a long time, even before his involvement in Eastern University, and feels honored at being asked if he would take his place. “Seeing mine and Dr. Matthews’ roles within Eastern going full circle can only be described as God’s divine plan,” Ford says. Dr. Ford also says that his promotion means “stewardship and accountability.”

      He has referenced Luke 12:48 to describe his role: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”

      He is accepting that he has a great responsibility for the department but also sees it as a team effort. One of Dr. Ford’s great attributes is that he looks at every student as an individual and cares about each person while also looking at the music department as a family and as a team.  Each day he wants to approach his new role “with wisdom and grace.”

      Dr. Ford comes with years of experience in the professional world of music. With this knowledge of what the world expects from musicians, he wishes for each student to leave the department with a level of music literacy. Cultural awareness is very important to him and he wishes for music students to be exposed to diverse genres of music and to have heard music of all kinds during their time at Eastern. He is excited about people from all over the globe being a part of the music program at Eastern and hopes that this diversity will aid student exposure to different types of music. He also wants the University as a whole to hear and embrace more music. Having Dr. Ford’s experience and influence in the music department will further help the students to go into the world with the tools for success and have an understanding of how to build a successful career.

      Dr. Ford wants Eastern to see him as “touchable.”  He is one of the most friendly people one could meet and has made it known that he loves everybody. He sees Eastern as an “extended family” and is happy to see this family grow. He sees himself as a servant leader and wants the community to know that he is here for everyone. He cares about each student’s well-being and everyone is welcome to talk to him.  He is a beloved mentor of many and wants to continue to lead and care for all students.

      Dr. Ford brings to the department religious, professional and academic elements to music. He is a wonderful person and makes the department a better place with his positivity and view of people as family.  His happy, loving attitude is contagious and makes for a positive department. Eastern is excited to welcome this new head of the music department and has many great changes and additions to look forward to.