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For the past seven years, the Kennedy Center has launched its season with Prelude, a month-long series of events that are available to the public for free or at a low cost. Prelude gives a chance for new patrons to see the range of performances the Kennedy Center offers, while regular patrons have a chance to experience more contemporary and innovative works.
This year's Prelude is titled Arts Across America, and is a multi-disciplinary program featuring both traditional and modern artists from every state in the country. The performances were designed to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the National Cultural Center Act. Signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Act is the legislation under which the Kennedy Center was established. This season also marks the re-opening of the theater bearing Eisenhower's name, after having undergone an extensive renovation.
A highlight of Prelude is the Kennedy Center's Open House Arts Festival. The 24th iteration of the day-long event takes place this Saturday.
"The festival is the Arts Across America Prelude distilled into one day," said Garth Ross, Director of the Center's Performing Arts for Everyone initiative. "It's a day when the whole building is open to the public with no tickets required."
The festival's program features all of the Kennedy Center's spaces and resident ensembles, and is meant to have a broad appeal.
As Ross explained, "The early part of the day has a particular focus on families with young children. Later in the day we'll have performances for more adventurous arts participators. The whole festival is for people from 7 to 77."
The early part of the program showcases everything from concerts, to cowboy shows, to puppeteering. Highlights include Hawaii's Jake Shimabukuro, the ukulele virtuoso who manages to take the native instrument across genres into the worlds of jazz, blues, funk, classical, bluegrass, folk, flamenco, and rock. New Jersey's Joshua Nelson is another must see. The "Prince of Kosher Gospel", Nelson takes Jewish liturgical text and sets it in an African American gospel style. His voice also bears an uncanny resemblance to that of the great Mahalia Jackson.
On Saturday evening, things will really start heating up. At 6 p.m. there will be two simultaneous dance performances. The Concert Hall will host a step show featuring Step Afrika! along side six nationally recognized collegiate step groups. The Eisenhower Theater will show the classical face of dance with the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, the Nevada Ballet Theatre, and The Suzanne Farrell Ballet.
The Kennedy Center's South Plaza is where the day will reach a climax. Maryland's DJ Rahsaan will spin hip hop, Go-Go, and Deep House beginning at 7 p.m. At 9 p.m., the day culminates in a go-go show with none other than The Godfather himself, Chuck Brown.
This event and its diverse lineup emphasizes the over-arching goal of not only festival, but the Kennedy Center as a whole. As Ross put it, "From the fine arts, to traditional, to masters, to innovators, this festival is looking at what a cultural plurality the United States is."
The Kennedy Center's 24th Annual Open House Arts Festival runs Saturday, September 13 from noon to 11 p.m., and is free all day long.
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