Bill T. Jones to Discuss the Arts and Social Justice at Marymount Manhattan College on February 6th

Marymount Manhattan College's Ferraro Institute for Breakthrough Civic Leadership is pleased to announce its inaugural event: Bill T. Jones on the Arts and Social Justice, in conversation with Lane Harwell of the Ford Foundation slated for February 6, 2019 on the Marymount Manhattan campus. The Rudin Foundation is also a sponsor of this event.

Program details:

Bill T. Jones on the Arts and Social Justice
In conversation with Lane Harwell of the Ford Foundation

7 p.m.
Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Theresa Lang Theater
Marymount Manhattan College
221 East 71st Street
New York, New York 10021

Reception to follow. The event is free and open to the public, though seating is limited. Please register at www.mmm.edu/billtjones

"Bill T. Jones has dedicated much of his legendary career to harnessing the power of art to effect social change, and he has been recognized far and wide for this lifelong passion," said MMC President Kerry Walk. "We are deeply honored that he will be speaking to students from across the College, most especially the arts, as well as members of the New York City community and all who are ready to be inspired by an incomparable socially engaged artist."

Bill T. Jones, a multi-talented artist, choreographer, dancer, theater director and writer, has received major honors ranging from the Human Rights Campaign's 2016 Visibility Award, 2013 National Medal of Arts to a 1994 MacArthur "Genius" Award and Kennedy Center Honors in 2010. Mr. Jones was honored with the 2014 Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, recognized as Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government in 2010, inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences in 2009 and named "An Irreplaceable Dance Treasure" by the Dance Heritage Coalition in 2000. His ventures into Broadway theater resulted in a 2010 Tony Award for Best Choreography in the critically acclaimed FELA!, the new musical co-conceived, co-written, directed and choreographed by Mr. Jones. He also earned a 2007 Tony Award for Best Choreography in Spring Awakening as well as an Obie Award for the show's 2006 off-Broadway run. His choreography for the off-Broadway production of The Seven earned him a 2006 Lucille Lortel Award. Mr. Jones began his dance training at the State University of New York at Binghamton (SUNY), where he studied classical ballet and modern dance. After living in Amsterdam, Mr. Jones returned to SUNY, where he became co-founder of the American Dance Asylum in 1973. In 1982 he formed the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company (then called Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane & Company) with his late partner, Arnie Zane. Mr. Jones is currently Artistic Director of New York Live Arts, an organization that strives to create a robust framework in support of the nation's dance and movement-based artists through new approaches to producing, presenting and educating. For more information visit www.newyorklivearts.org.

Lane Harwell, Program Officer, Creativity and Free Expression for the Ford Foundation, joined the foundation in 2018, after serving as the founding Executive Director of the service organization Dance/NYC for nearly eight years. Prior to Dance/NYC, he held the senior development role at the arts-wide advocacy group Alliance for the Arts. A lifelong New Yorker and a product of its creative and social justice sectors, Harwell's history in the arts also includes training at the School of American Ballet and a performance career with American Ballet Theatre Studio Company. Lane co-chairs the Chancellor's Arts Committee to the Panel for Education Policy. He is an appointee to New York State's Blue Ribbon Commission on the Arts and New York City's Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission and is a member of the Board of New Yorkers for Culture & Arts and leadership committees for Hunter College and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Lane is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Lane has an MBA from Columbia Business School, and MA in Performance Studies from the University of California at Berkeley, and a BA in Philosophy from Princeton University.

Marymount Manhattan College is a coeducational, independent, private liberal arts college located in Manhattan, New York City. The mission of the College is to educate a socially and economically diverse student body by fostering intellectual achievement and personal growth and by providing opportunities for career development. To learn more about MMC, please visit: www.mmm.edu.

Marymount Manhattan College's Geraldine A. Ferraro Institute for Breakthrough Civic Leadership ("The Ferraro Institute") is a multidisciplinary platform exploring civic leadership through the arts, media, community engagement and public service, and the role of higher education as a framework for advancing civic thought, creating changemaking and supporting emerging leaders in our society.