OMAI & Dane Dances! Present
DanceFest
A scholarship fundraiser for the UW Office of Multicultural Affairs First Wave program – March 3 (In conjunction with the UW All-Campus Party and sponsored by Isthmus | TheDailyPage.com)
OMAI & Dane Dances! DanceFest
This is a Benefit for First Wave Scholarships
The First Wave Spoken Word and Urban Arts Learning Community is a totally unique & vibrant environment for first-year students at the UW, opening in the fall of '07, it will bring together young poetic voices from throughout the U.S. to live in a dynamic, multicultural university community—the first on a college campus in the country. Information about First Wave and other programs for the UW Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives can be found here and in this document.
DanceFest Web Site
The web site for DanceFest is http://www.danedances.org/dancefest/default.aspx You can find more information and links on this web site. There is also a short YouTube video of SambDa.
Dane Dances! Web Site
The web site for Dane Dances! is http://www.danedances.org/default.aspx You can find more information about Dane Dances! on this site. The Dane Dances! mission is To provide a joyous social experience, through music, dance, and other activities that helps to facilitate improved race relations in the Dane County and surrounding areas. As a result of this social interaction, an appreciation and respect is developed for our diverse community.
Featured Bands:
SambaDa - California's hottest Afro-Brazilian funk band.
Saturday, March 3rd, 8:00pm at the Great Hall, Memorial Union
Students with ID: $10
All others: $20
Tickets available at the Union Theater Box Office 262-2201 or on-line here.
The Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives’ (OMAI) First Wave Spoken Word and Urban Arts Learning Community
OMAI’s
First Wave Spoken
Word and Urban Arts Learning Community is a unique and vibrant
environment for first-year students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
slated to begin in the fall of 2007. Bringing together student artists and
leaders, poets, rappers, DJs, singers, dancers, actors, graphic artists,
organizers, and more from throughout the U.S. to live, study, and create in a
dynamic, multicultural university community. First Wave is the nation’s
first integrated urban arts program. Students participating in the First Wave
will have the opportunity to:
*develop and share their artistic skills with the support of renowned, cutting-edge artists and leaders drawn from across the country;
*participate in the First Wave Urban Arts Touring Company, which will take the artists on the road to showcase their talents;
*engage the University and Madison community in creative service-learning projects that combine arts and activism; and
*pursue their academic and career goals by studying fields that merge hip-hop culture with professional development.
Additionally, the First Wave Learning Community will play a key role in
improving campus climate since programming tied to First Wave will infuse the
University with a plethora of dynamic cultural activities (showcases, open
mics, poetry slams, workshops and performances with renowned visiting spoken
word and hip-hop artists, etc.) that will attract and stimulate the
participation of other students of color on campus as well as the majority
population.
Students for First Wave have been recruited throughout Wisconsin, the Midwest
and the nation through OMAI’s ground-breaking outreach efforts which has made
it a national leader in the areas of spoken word and hip-hop community
building. Through its partnerships in Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Chicago,
New York, San Francisco, Washington, DC, and 10 other cities throughout the
U.S, OMAI has been able to identify grass-roots, school-based and
after-school clubs and organizations that have used spoken word and hip-hop as
a vehicle for youth empowerment and leadership formation. These organizations,
along with school-based spoken word clubs in all of Madison’s major high
schools, form the pipeline for First Wave recruits.
Fifteen First Wave students who have passed through a rigorous screening
process will enter the UW-Madison in the fall of 2007. Subsequently, fifteen
students will be added each academic year to ensure a manageable growth in the
program. Students accepted to First Wave will have strong academic backgrounds,
demonstrated leadership skills and significant artistic talent and potential.
First Wave students will serve as the recruiters for the following cohort of
First Wavers, visiting the organizations and school programs that make up the
pipeline program.
Securing scholarships for First Wave students is essential for the recruitment
process. Thus, OMAI is prioritizing funding for scholarships as its main
objective. We hope to offer full-ride scholarships to our top recruits
(tuition, food and housing) and, at a minimum, support for housing and meals
for other members of the First Wave cohort. Other giving opportunities include
support for ongoing programming efforts of OMAI, payments for staff and
instructors and general supplies and expenses support for First Wave.
For information on First Wave, contact Willie Ney, Executive Director, Office of
Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI) at wney@wisc.eduor by
calling 608-890-1055. Also, for additional program information on First
Wave see http://www.youthspeakswisconsin.wisc.edu/
More Info:
YOUTH SPEAKS WISCONSIN (UW Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives)
HOME (Marc Bamuthi Joseph residency home page)
LEGACY (by Jeff Chang – recommended reading)