More Photos from "House of Dreams"

Our director Jerry Perna with Mike S., Laura, and Linda before the performance


Tom and usher Rasheed


Richard chases Keith as a muskrat.


David emerges from a giant egg as a baby dinosaur.


Richard leads the audience in a game of "Simon Says."


Taking a bow


Ashley and her friend after the performance

These photos from the debut of House of Dreams were taken by Bonnie Squires unless otherwise noted.

"House of Dreams" Debut

Our play, House Of Dreams, premiered at The Rotunda in West Philadelphia yesterday to a very supportive and receptive audience.

It encompasses the main goals of the program by showcasing the various creative talents of the individuals within the Cultural Arts program through acting, writing, performance art, choreographed movement, live and recorded music, 2 and 3 dimensional visual art, and multimedia outlets, all under the umbrella of theater.

The project was headed by Jerry Perna, Michael Gerkovich, and Alie Vidich, with the rest of the Cultural Arts staff contributing in a strong way. Linda Price and Gina Renzi facilitated its creation.


Richard contributed a great deal of his creative energy to this project. He played beautiful songs for the audience as the cast took their places backstage.


Mike S. narrates.


Eyes in the dark, at the bottom of the sea


The cast focuses their collective energy to become The Blob


David emerges from a dinosaur egg.

Special thanks to Nofre Vaquer for taking these photographs!

House Of Dreams opens Saturday!

House Of Dreams, the play we've been working on throughout the summer, will be premiering this Saturday, September 25th at The Rotunda (4014 Walnut Street, West Philadelphia) at 1:00pm. We look forward to once again sharing our work with the community.





http://www.therotunda.org/calendar/house-of-dreams/

PDDC Picnic!

There was dancing, games and delicious food to be shared at the annual Arc/PDDC Picnic! The artists of Cultural Arts program designed and printed the t-shirts we wore that day. Special thanks to Shalaine Wallace for organizing this event and Mike Barnes for coordinating the Chestnut Hill College volunteers who helped make the day a success!


Marcos and a volunteer from Chestnut Hill College


Jane and Alison with Swoop


Charles and Kelvin


Asha and Fatima


Sarah and David


Mike S. meets Swoop

Temple Football Practice

Today a group of people from PDDC's programs watched a Temple football team practice. Their quarterback Kee-ayre Griffen has been volunteering in the Cultural Arts Center this month. Many thanks to Temple and to Mike Barnes for making this trip happen!


Rasheed and Chester Stewart


Rasheed and PDDC/Arc intern Tim


Kee-ayre and Murph

building the moon

Fabric collage has become a dominant aesthetic in the set design for our upcoming play, House Of Dreams. It will be performed at The Rotunda on Saturday, September 25th.


Ashley, Yvonne, Mike S., and Sarah hot glue the surface patterns.


Ashley adds fabric cuttings to the endless pile of colors and shapes.

Charlene & Emilia's collaborative portraits

This past Friday, Charlene and Emilia spent the afternoon creating a series of portraits together.

Morris Arboretum bookends the summer

Last week, a group from Cultural Arts once again ventured away from the urban grid of Philadelphia, to the pastoral settings of the Morris Arboretum in Chestnut Hill.


Hector is seen here enjoying a bush of roses.


Linda, Yvonne, Monica, Pietro, Myron, and Charlene observe the landscape.





Rasheed, as per usual, handles the camera like an unblinking eye.

One and Three Quarters of an Inch Exhibition

Sandy's notebooks will be included in an exhibition, One and Three Quarters of an Inch, that opens September 11 at the Former Convent at St. Ceceila's Parish in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. The exhibition will be presented in the dark, and the artwork will be viewed by way of flashlight. Check out curator Peter Clough's website for more information.