READ ME A WORLD Comes to Philadelphia Fringe Festival

 Have you ever read a book aloud inside of a giant piñata?  Or while immersed in an underwater seascape?  Read Me A World is an opportunity to do just that.  This participatory, immersive celebration of the intimate joys of reading aloud will invigorate Liberty Lands Park with expressive reading and imaginative art installations on four Saturday mornings this September.  The event will run September 9, September 16, September 23, and September 30 beginning at 10am each morning. 

With installations by Philadelphia artists Feather Chiaverini (Tyler School of Art’s Queer Materials Lab), Natalie Kuenzi (VOX Populi), J Bean Schwab (Spiral Q; Theatre Exile), George Rodriguez (In Unison at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens), and Julie Woodard (Pockets of Light with the Delaware River Waterfront), Read Me A World will appeal to story lovers and immersive art enthusiasts of all ages as they are stewarded by a cohort of friendly “Facilibrarians” dedicated to helping all participants feel playful and relaxed. 

“This project was inspired by my own joy in reading aloud to my friends and family, and the delight I feel in being read aloud to myself,” Creative Producer Marisol Soledad shares.  “Jorge Luis Borges said, ‘The soul is contained in the human voice,’ and there is so much truth in that statement.  It is deeply generous to collaborate with a loved one by imagining worlds together based on what we read or see in a book.  And reading expressively is a small creative risk we can take that offers immeasurable rewards!”  While Read Me A World will be child- and family-friendly, Soledad hopes that readers and book lovers of all ages will attend and enjoy the event:  “There will be all kinds of reading material available, from indestructible books for infants to essays by bell hooks.  And while the developmental and literacy benefits of reading aloud to children are well-known, my hope is that Read Me A World will also remind participants that reading aloud can generate a rich pathway to connection for readers and listeners of all ages.”

Read Me A World is a curated Panel Pick in the Cannonball Festival’s inaugural Performance for Young Audiences Cohort, and is supported, in part, by the Office of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy and by the Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation and the Marrazzo Family Foundation.  The event is presented for free to all audiences.  Donations are encouraged.  This participatory event is recommended for audiences of all ages. For more information, please contact Marisol Soledad at marisolwriting@gmail.com. 

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