4th Annual Station Hope Celebration Features 250 Artists Performing Social Justice-Inspired Works

Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) is proud to announce CPT's fourth annual Station Hope event on Saturday, April 29th, from 6:30 - 10:30pm on the grounds of St. John's Episcopal Church, 2600 Church Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio. Station Hope is a jubilant community event that celebrates Cleveland's social justice heritage and explores contemporary struggles for freedom and equity. Engage with over 250 artists and 50+ community and professional arts & culture organizations from across Northeast Ohio as they envision, interrogate and seek out hope on the grounds of Cleveland's first authenticated Underground Railroad site, St. John's Episcopal Church. Audiences explore the historic properties while viewing works of theatre, music, storytelling and dance inspired by the most important issues of our time. Station Hope is free, family-friendly and open to all.

Last year, over 3,000 people attended the third annual Station Hope event, which featured art and performance staged in and around St. John's Church, one of the most historically significant sites in Greater Cleveland. Audiences tour St. John's sanctuary, parish hall and basement to view an array of short performances of dance, theatre, spoken word, storytelling and music. Visual art displays and interactive art activities permeate the event while choral performances set the atmosphere of the outdoor spaces in and around the historic church.

Station Hope 2017 will feature both new and returning artists, celebrating hope and tackling such contemporary topics as immigration, education, police brutality, human trafficking, gun violence, income inequality, racism and gender discrimination-alongside historically-based original works that celebrate the people and stories comprising Northeast Ohio's Underground Railroad history. Station Hope is diverse in types of performances, but also in the different groups from our community gathering together - residents of the nearby public housing estate at Lakeview Terrace join long-time and new residents of the Ohio City neighborhood, along with real-estate developers, arts-lovers, business owners and politicians, to make up a highly economically diverse crowd.

"Station Hope is a true gathering of community and demonstrates how transformative and powerful an arts experience can be, and its potential to change the fabric of our society." - Joe Cimperman, President of Global Cleveland

Cleveland Public Theatre's Station Hope event is presented in partnership with The Episcopal Diocese of Ohio & St. John's Institute, Ward 3 Councilman Kerry McCormack, Ohio City Incorporated, Graham Veysey & Marika Shioiri-Clark, Restore Cleveland Hope & the Cozad-Bates House and Global Cleveland with over 50 participating arts groups and 250 individual artists from the Northeast Ohio region.

Leadership supporters of Station Hope 2017 include the City of Cleveland, The Episcopal Diocese of Ohio, Char & Chuck Fowler, The George Gund Foundation, Ohio City Incorporated, Deborah & Ron Ratner, Third Federal Savings & Loan and WKYC. Other sponsors include the Cleveland Browns, Platform Beer Co., Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland, Saucy Brew Works, Cleveland Clinic Lutheran Hospital, Cleveland Indians, Cleveland State University, Cuyahoga Community College, Dave's Markets, Marous Brothers Construction and Snavely Group.

Station Hope is proudly presented in conjunction with the yearlong Stokes commemoration project, honoring the legacies of Mayor Carl B. Stokes and Congressman Louis Stokes. Learn more at stokes50cle.com.

About St. John's Episcopal Church

St. John's Episcopal Church was built beginning in 1836 and completed in 1838. As a church active in the Underground Railroad, St. John's was a last stop for fleeing slaves seeking freedom across the waters of Lake Erie, and the church's steeple acted as a beacon of freedom. St. John's is the oldest consecrated building in Cuyahoga County.

Ticket & Show Information

Station Hope is a free event and will take place on Saturday, April 29, from 6:30pm-10:00pm on the grounds of St. John's Episcopal Church, located at 2600 Church Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44113. The event is open to all ages.

Performances will take base on a rotating basis throughout St. John's Episcopal Church and adjoining buildings, as well as an extended footprint of outdoor spaces surrounding the church. Note: Due to the historic construction of the building, some interior spaces may not be accessible to people with limited mobility.

The complete lineup of Station Hope 2017 artists (List subject to change):

The 3 Winds Project, African American Quilt & Doll Guild, Molly Andrews-Hinders, Inda Blatch-Geib Designs,

Bodwin Theatre Co., India Burton, Cleveland Association of Black Storytellers, Cleveland Public Theatre,

CPT's Brick City Theatre - Lakeview Terrace: Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, Eric Coble,

Creative Concepts in Music, Kevin Cronin, Djapo Cultural Arts Institute, Elu Dance Company, Eric M. C. Gonzalez, Christine Howey, Inlet Dance Theatre, Meredith L. King, Shenee King, Kings and Queens of Art,

Robin Pease & Kulture Kids, Lake Erie Ink, The Lantern Theatre, The LanYe' Performing Arts Ensemble, Literary Cleveland, Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage, Ohio City Theatre Project, Page to Stage Productions, Restore Cleveland Hope,

Adam Spells, John Stuehr, Tina D. Stump & Eric Schmiedl, Teatro Publico de Cleveland,

Teatro Travieso (Troublemaker Theatre), Theater Ninjas, Jaclyn Vogel, White Rabbit Studio,

Carrie Williams, Kenya Woods

No tickets needed. The family-friendly event is FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

For more information, visit http://www.cptonline.org/performances/seasons/2016-2017/station-hope-2017/.

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