SPRING 2018 12 | FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM Spring Arts & Culture Directory AZCitizensForTheArts.org AZCitizensForTheArts.org For more than 35 years, Arizona Citizens for the Arts has been the public voice of non-profit arts and culture. Our goal – a vibrant well-funded arts and culture sector that gets rightful credit for the contributions it makes to shaping the future for our young people and the vitality of our local com- munities. Along with more than 100 arts and culture organizations statewide and 5,000 citizen advocates, we do together what organizations alone cannot – change perceptions and change policy for the benefit of arts and culture in Arizona. A relentless advocate for more public and private funding for arts and culture in Arizona... An enthusiastic promoter of arts education in our schools... A reliable source of information on arts and culture issues for advocates, media, elected officials and voters...

SPRING 2018 FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM | 13 Spring Arts & Culture Directory BLACK THEATRE TROUPE Black Theatre Troupe’s acclaimed 2017/18 Season includes Caroline or Change, bringing Motown and gospel set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement, August Wilson’s epic Seven Guitars, Black Nativity, a legendary holiday event based on Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes, a powerful look at school segregation with Lines in the Dust, and concluding with Blackberry Daze, a musical adaptation of Ruth P. Watson’s romantic mystery thriller. blacktheatretroupe.org CENTER DANCE ENSEMBLE As the resident dance company at the Herberger Theater Center in downtown Phoenix, Center Dance Ensemble performs mesmerizing original works of classic modern dance. Sharpened and honed by the steady hand of Artistic Director Fran Cohen, each performance tells stories through movement, bringing unique choreography rooted in the groundbreaking philosophy of the great Martha Graham. This spring, Center Dance will bring two distinct pieces to the stage in March, the classic fairy-tale with a modern beat, Cinderella Rock! and a fascinating interpretation of Shakespeare’s Othello paired with pieces choreographed for his famous sonnets. The season concludes with American Voices, where choreography and spoken word converge in a celebration for National Poetry Month. centerdance.com THE BRIDGE INITIATIVE: WOMEN IN THEATRE The Bridge Initiative: Women in Theatre incubates and celebrates professional female theatre artists, promoting gender parity across all theatrical disciplines. Upcoming programming: 2018 BUILDING MORE BRIDGES GALA CELEBRATION, Saturday, February 24th at 6 p.m. The evening will include food and drink, a silent auction, entertainment, community building… AND… the announcement of the title of our first full production to be staged for a three-week run in December 2018. And don’t miss HEARING HER VOICE: NEW WORK BY WOMEN, a monthly play-reading series hosted at the ASU Kerr Cultural Center, free to the public. bridgeinit.org