Anthony Rapp Will Deliver Keynote at First Annual Stage The Change PNW Conference

The Tower Theatre Foundation will present the first ever "Stage the Change" event on the West Coast. High school students from throughout the Pacific Northwest are invited to attend this two-day conference which is developed in partnership with the New York based non-profit Stage the Change. The goal of "Stage the Change" is to inspire, teach, and help attendees employ the performing arts to find their social voice to become responsible global citizens and catalysts for change. The conference format will be:

Friday evening - Broadway and TV Star Anthony Rapp (RENT, Star Trek) to give keynote at the Tower Theatre (performance to follow keynote)

Saturday morning - Author, Museum at Warm Springs Director and Former Oregon Poet Laureate Elizabeth Woody to deliver keynote at the Tower Theatre

Saturday afternoon - Three interactive workshop sessions with four themed tracks, titled:

Art and Racism; Environmental Activism; LGBTQ+ Equality; Adversity Meets Innovation

The twelve workshops will be held at our two partner sites in Bend: COCC and OSU-Cascades. Confirmed workshop presenters include: Johamy Morales of Seattle Children's Theater, Oluyinka Akinjiola of Rejoice Diaspara, John Kish Actor/Owner of Somewhere That's Green, #instaballet, Choreographer Shaun Keylock, Actor Marcus LeGrand, Composer Chris Thomas, Hip Hop Musician Mic Crenshaw, Singer-Songwriter Maiah Wynne, Actor/Dancer/Musician, Intimacy Director J.C. "Jace" Meyer-Crosby, and Chair of Native American Studies at Southern Oregon University Brent Florendo.

Saturday night

7 pm - a curated opportunity at the Tower Theatre for theatre, dance and music groups to perform diverse and inclusive works, showcasing student art activists actually Staging the Change.

9 pm - all attendees will enjoy a post-performance dessert celebration sponsored by Bonta and conference wrap-up.

Cost for 2-Day/All-Access Conference is $20 and can be purchased at https://www.towertheatre.org/education/stage-the-change/. All students and chaperones need to purchase a pass.

Tower Theatre thanks our supporters: Bend Cultural Tourism Fund, BendBroadband, St. Charles Health System, Pacific Power, MDU Resources, and Columbia Bank for their support for this inaugural conference. More thanks to Bonta Gelato for sponsoring the dessert reception.

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