Performing Arts Workshop Names New Executive Director
by Brian Wiedenmeier

The Board of Directors of Performing Arts Workshop has named Jessica Mele the organization’s new Executive Director. Mele, currently Deputy Director, will replace Tom DeCaigny, who has served in that role for the past eight years. The transition will be effective February 14, 2011.

“I am honored that the Workshop’s Board of Directors has entrusted me to lead one of the nation’s premier arts education organizations,” said Mele, who first joined the workshop in 2006 as a member of the Program staff, “I firmly believe that after 45 years of excellence in direct service, we are just beginning to reach our full potential as a social change organization. I am thrilled to lead Performing Arts Workshop during this exciting period.”

DeCaigny, who joined the organization eleven years ago as the Program Manager for the Robeson & Rivera Academy, said he was leaving to pursue new career opportunities.

“It’s time for me to explore something new,” he said, “It’s bittersweet to transition from a role that has afforded me the privilege of working with such talented colleagues and dedicated community partners, but I will remain a part of the Workshop’s extended family for years to come.  It’s an honor to pass the reins to my close colleague, Jessica. I look forward to supporting her and the Board of Directors during this exciting transition.”

Board President Monique Olivier praised DeCaigny for his accomplishments during the years he led the workshop.

“Under Tom’s leadership the organization grew by leaps and bounds, gaining national recognition for its work, and impacting the lives of thousands of young people,” Olivier said. “The Workshop is fortunate to have a talented leader in Jessica Mele. The Board has the utmost confidence in her ability to guide the organization into the future.”

Save the Date! Event to Honor Tom DeCaigny’s Service and Welcome Jessica Mele
by Brian Wiedenmeier

Performing Arts Workshop's Board of Directors will host a celebration to honor outgoing Exectuive Director Tom DeCaigny and welcome his successor, Jessica Mele. The party will be held the evening of Tuesday, April 5, from 7pm to 10pm at Public Works, 161 Erie Street, San Francisco. More information to come.

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New Year, New Faces
by Anne Trickey

In addition to Aurora King, the Workshop’s new Program Manager who joined us in November, the Workshop is pleased to welcome two new staff members, Beverly Mislang and Larry Jones.

Beverly Mislang is the Workshop’s new Individual Giving Coordinator.  Beverly comes to us with experience working as a Fundraising Associate at Streetside Stories through the Americorps VISTA program. She has also worked in various development capacities for the Habitot Children’s Museum and the Tibetan Aid Project, both in Berkeley. Her experience and skills will serve her well in her new role at the Workshop. You can reach Beverly at, beverly@performingartsworkshop.org.

Laurence (Larry) Jones has joined the Workshop staff as our new Program & Administrative Assistant. Having lived and worked in the Bay Area, he has in-depth experience with the local arts education field. Most recently, he served as the Executive Administrator for the Community Development Institute in East Palo Alto, which provides peninsula schools with arts programming. He comes highly recommended and looks to be a great addition to our team! You can reach Larry at, larry@performingartsworkshop.org.

Welcome Beverly and Larry! With great people on staff, we can focus on our mission to help young people develop critical thinking, creative expression and basic learning skills through the arts.

Douglas Leads the Dance
by Becca Rozell

The following is a story from one of our teaching artists, Becca Rozell. She taught a World Dance class at Garden Village Elementary:

During my residency at Garden Village Elementary School in Daly City, I came across a lot of characters. One that sticks out to me was Douglas. He would either observe or he would get so into class he'd often have to sit out because he'd forget to follow directions which was a distraction for other students. Others looked up to him because he had a strong personality. When eyes were on him, he didn't want to look like he was taking it too seriously.

As I continued to work with the class, I began having them work on dances in small groups. At first, Douglas was distracting and goofed off most the time. Then there was a shift. At some point he got into the task, and when that happened he became a leader. Not in a bossy way, but in a way that helped guide his peers in their tasks and took control when needed. I was so impressed by the dance they did. Not only was it fun to watch, but they came up with interesting choices. What stood out most of all was the transition between trouble maker-to leader and choreographer. I don't think he even realized it happened, but it was great to witness him using his strong personality in such a positive way. I'm confident he will continue to do just that.

Jump-start the New Year with a Life-changing Gift
by Beverly Mislang

Right now, people in Washington are threatening to send arts groups like the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to the guillotine, even as community arts and education organizations across the country are fighting to meet the increased demand for quality educational services.  In this unsteady economy, your gift to Performing Arts Workshop makes a giant impact in the lives of youth others might refer to as at-risk.  Your generous contribution delivers exciting arts programs that help young people develop the 21st century skills they need to be successful in school, work and life.  If we don’t have arts in the schools, we don’t have education in the schools.  Click the “DONATE NOW” button on our website ( www.PerformingArtsWorkshop.org) to give young people the education they need and deserve.

Artist Spotlight: Liz Tenuto
by Anne Trickey

The Artist Spotlight gives the Workshop a chance to showcase artists currently igniting young minds in schools and communities. This month we are featuring Liz Tenuto.

What brings you to Performing Arts Workshop?

In fall of 2008, I joined the workshop upon a recommendation from a friend within the insular Bay Area dance world. At the time, I was working at a sweaty yoga studio and living in the attic of a rundown Victorian in Outer Mission. Upon starting, I noticed that Performing Arts Workshop was actually different than any other teaching organization that I had worked for in the past--the level of investment from the organization in the teaching artist was something that I had never witnessed before. The mentorship program really gave me time to embrace the Workshop’s methodology and accustom myself to working with San Francisco youth which indeed was very different from my past experience--working in studios and in schools with mostly Latin youth from my old stomping ground, Santa Barbara. Performing Arts Workshop equipped me with the tools to address diverse populations and to not only create partnerships with school teachers, but also to learn how to speak their language. Once I saw the support system of the artistic community within the Workshop through the monthly cohort meetings and the peer development days, I took a risk to quit the sweaty yoga studio and haven't looked back since.

Currently, I teach Creative Movement and World Dance (flamenco) to pre-k and elementary school aged students in San Francisco and Berkeley through the Workshop. My classes are process-based with an emphasis on leadership, improvisation and imagination. By using imagery, physical theater and world music, I encourage students to move freely while guiding them into the theme of the day. This year, I am emphasizing socialization and experiential anatomy in class with the goal of enhancing internal body awareness and addressing how to utilize said awareness in external space with other students. Through dance, I hope to reveal how kinesthetic all of our experiences are by nature, and how to utilize memories and dreams to recreate different states of the body.

Where can we see you in action?

Dancing in a music video for the Oakland-based band, Tune Yards. Filming is at the end of January. http://tune-yards.com/

*My Home Theater Festival Show on Thursday, March 10th 8pm at my house in Outer Sunset, SF. Confirmed performers are: Laura Arrington Dance, Jesse Hewit, Pearl Marril, Kira Kirsch, Philip Huang and Katie Colver. These are a gaggle of some of the most evocative and experimental performers in the Bay Area who encompass all performance mediums. Come for a risky and entertaining night. Please email liztenuto@gmail.com for address or questions.

The (International) Home Theater Festival is a DIY project curated by Berkeley comedian, Philip Huang, that encourages artists to become independent from producing institutions. Currently, the climate of making art relies heavily upon grants and institutional support, a paradigm that emphasizes fundraising over artistic creation. This project makes the case that artists do not need an institution to legitimize them and can rather utilize their homes and neighborhoods as performance spaces.