The 49th Annual Blue Ribbon Children's Festival Returns To The Music Center

For three days in March 2019, nearly 18,000 elementary school children from nearly 200 schools in Los Angeles County will arrive at The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to see a special performance and to dance during the 49th annual Blue Ribbon Children's Festival.

Designed specifically for fifth grade students, The Blue Ribbon Children's Festival is an admission-free program where students-many for the first time-experience a live professional performance at The Music Center, Los Angeles' world-class performing arts center, and then perform a short choreographed dance piece all together.

This year's Festival will feature the wildly innovative Australian dance company Circa Contemporary Circus in a presentation of Humans. Hailed as "poetry in motion" by the Australian Times, Humans was created by Yaron Lifschitz and features 10 acrobats who take audiences on a stirring journey of what it means to be human and of how our bodies, our connections and our aspirations all form part of who we are.

The 2019 Children's Festival dates are:
· Tuesday, March 5; 9:45am & 11:30am (media are invited to attend both shows.) · Wednesday, March 6; 9:45am & 11:30am · Thursday, March 7; 9:45am & 11:30am

Prior to the Festival, The Blue Ribbon and The Music Center's education team develop and provide schools from across the county with standards-based curriculum materials, background on the guest artists and classroom activities designed to prepare students for the performance they will be viewing. Students also learn and practice their own dance, which is modeled on the professional choreography they will experience during the Festival. They also learn about audience etiquette, what to watch for during the performance, dance history and terminology.

"The Blue Ribbon Children's Festival is such an important highlight on The Blue Ribbon calendar, and we're delighted to be able to present it again this year-it's the 49th edition," said Jill Baldauf, Blue Ribbon President. "Our continuing goal as Blue Ribbon members is to help enrich the lives of the greater Los Angeles community. Nothing exemplifies this commitment more than the Children's Festival. Our hope is that all 18,000 fifth graders that walk through the doors of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion this week will be inspired and excited for more involvement in the performing arts. We know arts education improves all education."

"Art has the ability to open lines of communication and transform lives, which is why The Blue Ribbon Children's Festival continues to be an inspiration to us all," said The Music Center's President and CEO Rachel Moore. "This annual celebration is a perfect example of The Music Center's vision to deepen the cultural lives of all residents in Los Angeles County. The outstanding work of The Blue Ribbon continues to open children's eyes to the power of the arts."

As California's longest continuing free arts and education initiative, the 2019 Blue Ribbon Children's Festival is presented by The Blue Ribbon, the premier women's support organization for The Music Center.

Countywide, fifth grade classes from nearly 200 participating schools receive advance standard-based curriculum materials, background on the guest artists and classroom activities designed to prepare students for the performance they will be viewing. Inspired by Circa Contemporary Circus performances, The Music Center created choreography specifically for the students with distributed teaching video links to the teachers for instruction. Students also learn about audience etiquette, what to watch for during the performance, dance history and terminology.

All students who participate in the Festival receive a keepsake book, A Journey Through The Music Center. The book was completely revised this year to reflect The Music Center and its resident companies of today. Describing The Music Center's four theatres and various aspects of live performance, A Journey Through The Music Center is a generous gift of Blue Ribbon member Maxine Dunitz.

The Blue Ribbon Children's Festival began in 1970 as part of The Music Center's commitment to engage young people in the arts. Nearly 900,000 children have participated in the Festival since its inception. More than 125 Blue Ribbon members volunteer over the three-day period to keep the Festival running smoothly.
The Blue Ribbon Chairs for the 2019 Festival are Karen Bedrosian Coyne and Cheryl Petersen.