OACCE launches Philly celebrates Jazz Community, a series of free events across the city

April 7, 2017 Category: Entertainment Posted by: Philadelphia Sun Staff

The City of Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy (OACCE) launches the Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Series, comprised of free concerts, dance classes, and film screenings in some of the City of Philadelphia libraries, parks and recreation centers, older adult centers, schools, Amtrak 30th Street Station, and in the Art Gallery at City Hall during Philly Celebrates Jazz, the citywide celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month in April.

“OAACE is proud to partner with a number of arts and education organizations, as well as local universities to launch the Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Series for twenty-six free events in celebration of jazz all throughout the city of Philadelphia,” said Chief Cultural Officer Kelly Lee. “We hope that Philadelphians will be able to take in a jazz performance or dance lesson at their local library or recreation center.”

OACCE is proudly partnering with performing arts organizations, including Artístas y Músicos Latino Americanos (AMLA), Philadelphia Jazz Project, LifeLine Music Coalition, Jazz Bridge, and jazz combos from the University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, and University of the Arts to take the Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Series to neighborhoods throughout the city.

Dance instructors from The Rock School for Dance Education and Take It Away Dance will be providing free dance instruction at community schools and recreation centers.

OACCE has also partnered with Philadelphia Asian American Film & Filmmakers and Philadelphia Film Society to present free jazz film screenings of Fred Ho’s Last Year at the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central Library and Chasing Trane at the Philadelphia Film Society’s Roxy Theater respectively.

Additionally, as a part of Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Jazz Series at City Hall, on Wednesdays at noon during the month of April, public radio station WRTI will present live listening sessions with internationally-renowned jazz artists in collaboration with OACCE.

The Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Series is also the launch of Culture in the Neighborhoods program, as OACCE will partner with arts organizations to bring quality performances and arts instruction to community sites throughout the city of Philadelphia.

“Culture in the Neighborhoods enables not only OACCE to bring the arts directly to these neighborhoods at locations Philadelphians use every day, it also provides these arts organizations with the opportunity to reach new audiences and serve new constituents that they otherwise would not usually reach,” said Chief Cultural Officer Kelly Lee.

The full schedule of the Philly Celebrates Jazz Community Series, Philly Celebrates Jazz WRTI Listening Sessions as well as the full Philly Celebrates Jazz Event Calendar, please visit: CreativePHL.org/Jazz.