VSA E file for MegaConference

							                      Careers in the Arts
                                         VSA TN gratefully acknowledges the
                       support for this program provided by the Tennessee Arts Commission


Presenters:

Deanne Collins, Ed.D., choreographer, playwright, director and actress, a VSA TN artist, and current
director of Kidz Kompany, a childrens’ theatre program. Deanne has a hearing impairment.

Angela Mosely, BS Music, performs with For His Call, is a regular at the Kentucky Opry, holds the
Frederick Chopin Piano Award, won the KMTA Bluegrass Piano Competition, held 1st place in the VSA
TN Young Soloists Competition for numerous years. Angela has a visual impairment. .


Bob Stagner has long been a recognized leader in Chattanooga in arts advocacy, co-founded the Shaking
Ray Levis and the Shaking Ray Levi Society, a regional director of Rhythmic Arts Project, a VSA TN
artist, and is an artist that is endorsed by Pearl Drums.

William Coleman, ADA Coordinator for the Tennessee Arts Commission, director of Arts Access.


Proposal Description: Professional-performing artists will share their talents in a 45-minute
performance followed by a panel discussion of why they elected a career in the arts and their strategies
for being successful. Artists will talk about some of the challenges they have faced while pursuing their
career, and how they overcome them. Participants will also enjoy a condensed performance of the
historical drama SCATHE, A Civil War Incident in Middle Tennessee written by Deanne Collins and
produced by the Tennessee Children's Home in Cooperation with the Spring Hill Historic Commission
with support from the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and the Tennessee Arts Commission.


Proposal Objectives: Participants will learn techniques for getting into the arts as a possible career
option.


Presenters:

Deanne Collins, Director, Playwright, Teaching Artist. Formerly a Dancer who traveled throughout
the United States as one of the original Dance Movement Specialists for the National Endowment for the
Arts, Artist-in- Schools Program. Deanne was a presenter for and at the Kennedy Center in Washington,
DC and on the artist roster of the Tennessee Arts Commission in Dance and Theatre. She performed and
choreographed for the Prime Movers, other Dance companies and University Dance Departments.

 Deanne Collins' education includes a B.F.A. from the University of Oklahoma, a M.Ed. and a Doctorate
from Vanderbilt University. She enjoyed a ten year affiliation with Nashville Institute for the Arts in
Tennessee and Wolf Trap in McLean Virginia. As Assistant Professor of Speech and Theatre at Lane
College in Jackson TN, she developed the curriculum for a degree in Theatre.

Currently Deanne’s spends the major part of the year writing and directing the plays and music for the
Spring Hill Library’s Kidz Kompany. Dr. Collins regularly contracts with VSA (Very Special Arts) to
conduct residencies in Playwriting and Dance; she acts as a patient simulator at Vanderbilt Medical
School and is active in summer art institutes. Publications include pamphlets and booklets relative to
dance as an art and movement as a science... Recent Plays she has written and produced include The
Nutcracker Story at Rippavilla, Ledbetter's Family Reunion, and the historical drama with music
SCATHE: A Civil War Incident in Middle, TN.



              SCATHE:             A Civil War Incident in Middle Tennessee

                            Script and Music by Deanne Collins, Ed.D.

The Story: The assassination of General Earl “Buck” Van Dorn took place on May 7, 1863 in the
old Martin Cheairs Home now known as Ferguson Hall. Jessie McKissack Peters, the beautifully
seductive wife of Dr. George peters, caught the eye and heart of the dashing General Earl Van Dorn.
The General was educated at West Point and was a notorious “Ladies Man.” It was not long before
Jessie and Earl became the topic of local gossip. The rumors reached the ears of Dr. Peters and he, as a
man of his times, shot and killed Van Dorn. The courts acquitted Van Dorn. His stated motive was to
preserve the sanctity of his home and in 1863, that motive was considered justifiable. However, Dr.
Peters had strong sympathies for the federals and who wanted the daily Rebel raids to stop. Many
speculated the assassination was really a conspiracy. What happened in Spring Hill is a specific
incident that represents a universal theme of war. When soldiers occupy small towns, even if they are
not the enemy, the values of the town are at risk. Everything changes.

The Play:        SCATHE was written to be a Historical Outdoor Drama, complete with memorable
music and spectacular displays of costumes, cavalry, horses, gunfire and cannon blasts. Every May
since 2008, the play has been presented as a Performance Reading with anticipation of producing the
full-length complete drama on an outdoor stage in 2013 the 150 th anniversary of the incident.

The People: The playwright/director has had a significant loss of hearing and vision. Since this
change, she hears tunes and sees movement that develops internally rather than externally and this
transformation has influenced her professional direction. This particular play about the Civil War offers
opportunities for gifted performers who have suffered from some disabling disease or accident to take
on roles as soldiers of that era. We are happy to present a condensed version of SCATHE for this
special Mega Conference.

For more information contact: Deanne M. Collins at deannemcollins@bellsouth.net or Bill Alsup at
balsup@tennesseechildrenshome.org




   The SCATHE CAST presented by The Tennessee Children’s Home in cooperation with the Spring Hill Historic Commission


Contact Deanne M. Collins, Ed.D.: Deanne M. Collins, 2007 Spring Meadow Circle, Spring Hill, TN
37174; (615)-302-0248; deannemcollins@bellsouth.net

Angela Mosley is a 27 year old from Puryear, Tennessee who has been totally blind since birth. She
started playing the piano when she was 4 years old. She is a 3003 graduate of the Tennessee School for
the Blind in Nashville; holds the B.S. in Music from Murray State University, graduating cum laude in
2007; performs weekly at the Kentucky Opry; is pianist for the gospel group For His Call; and regularly
performs solo at churches and events. She has won many awards including the PTA Reflections Contest
for the state of North Carolina, the Frederick Chopin Piano Award, and the KMTA Bluegrass Piano
Competition. You can hear more of Angela’s music at http://www.youtube.com/angelamosley
Contact Angela Mosley: Angela Mosley, 10175 Highway 641 North, Puryear, TN 38251,
(731)-247-3000; (731)-336-1918; or angelamosley@wk.net
Bob Stagner is a professional percussionist, teacher and speaker and a recognized leader in Chattanooga
arts advocacy for over 25 years. Bob co-founded the free improvisation duo, the Shaking Ray Levis,
and the Shaking Ray Levi Society, an arts education organization that supports emerging artists in
performance, art and film. Bob is also the Southeast director of the Rhythmic Arts Project that provides
music workshops for people with physical and mental disabilities founded by well-known drummer
Eddie Tuduri. In addition to an intensive local and national performance and speaking schedule, Bob
has an active teaching practice and conducts numerous TRAP workshops through such local, regional
and national organizations as Signal Centers, Chattanooga and Hamilton County school systems, Orange
Grove, T.C. Thompson's Children's Hospital, GoFest, WhoFest and VSA Tennessee. Bob is an
endorsed artist with Pearl Drums, and his work has been reviewed in national publications as The New
York Times. He has performed and recorded with a number of critically acclaimed artists, including
John Zorn, The Rev. Howard Finster, David Greenberger, Fred Drith, Min Tanaka, Amy Denio and
Derek Bailey.

Learn more about the Rhythmic Arts Project at http://www.traponline.com/vid.html and find out about
the Shaking Ray Levi Society http://www.shakingray.com/introduction.shtml .

Contact Bob Stagner: (423)-902-8021 or shakingray@shakingray.com


William Coleman is the Arts Access Director and ADA Coordinator for the Tennessee Arts
Commission. He will provide information about some of the opportunities available to artists with
disabilities that are available through the Tennessee Arts Commission at
http://www.tn.gov/arts/arts_access.htm

Contact William Coleman: 615-532-9797 or william.coleman@tn.gov


VSA TN
1210 Lake Rise Place
Gallatin TN 37066
www.vsatn.org
userk7706@comcast.net
(615) 826-5252

History

VSA arts International was founded in 1974 by Jean Kennedy Smith, sister to former President John F.
Kennedy and sister to the founder of Special Olympics. The organization was officially called Very
Special Arts and it had a mission to empower people with disabilities through the arts.

Mission

The mission of VSA arts Tennessee is to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to participate
in and express themselves through the arts and arts education.
Goals/Programs

VSA arts Tennessee achieves its mission through three primary goals:

1. Arts In Education

 VSA arts Tennessee works to expose children with disabilities to the arts, but also to use the arts as a
tool to assist children with disabilities to reach educational and behavioral goals. VSA TN has at least 3
residencies a year tied to the TN Dept of Ed. We also work on a number of special initiatives and
coordinate a summer arts camp. VSA also offers a Dulcimer Choir for teens with Autism through the
Blair School of Music.

2. Professional Development
 VSA offers special training sessions for artists with disabilities to help them learn better marketing and
communication skills. We also offer training sessions to special education teachers on integrating the
arts into the curriculum and sessions for cultural organizations to know how to make their programs
more accessible to people with disabilities.

3. Awareness of Abilities of People with Disabilities

 VSA arts Tennessee believes in the abilities of all people. Therefore, each year artists with disabilities
are showcased in performances and exhibitions at locations such as the Bluebird Café, Country Music
Hall of Fame, the Ryman, The Wildhorse, the Frist, the Legislative Plaza, Gallatin City Hall and the list
goes on. In addition, VSA offers competitions in visual arts, writing and music for people with
disabilities.


                              Sample Programs of VSA Tennessee 2011


Workshops for Teens with disabilities in the following: Costuming design and creation in partnership
with Middle Tennessee State University, “Art Shoes” that will be donated to needy children in the
Appalachian region, “Souper Bowl” clay bowls were made by children with visual impairments and
donations were made by individuals who came to the exhibit to their “favorite bowl” and the funds were
used to feed nearly 100 people at the Nashville Rescue Mission, “Out of Africa” fiber dolls which is an
art exchange between children in Sweetwater and a school in South Africa.

Performances by artists with disabilities at: Vanderbilt on Jan. 24, Children’s Advocacy Conference
March 15, the Schermerhorn Nashville Symphony Hall April 12, A Day of Music at Volunteer State
Community College April 16, Knoxville Dogwood Festival April 24, Memphis Special Education
Festival April 22, Artism Day in Sweetwater May 21, A Day of Music with the Nashville Symphony
May 22 and the MEGAconference June 3.
Exhibitions of art by people with disabilities: Athens TN Feb 1-28, Johnson City TN April 1-30,
Schermerhorn Symphony Hall April 12, The Sumner County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau in May,
Tennessee Performing Arts Center June 5 – August 5.

Competitions in writing, music and visual arts for school aged children. All of these competitions feed
into scholarship programs at our national office.

A national professional development training on arts integration at the University of Tennessee in
Knoxville on March 15 and at the Schermerhorn in Nashville on April 12.

A music residency at the Tennessee School for the Blind in partnership with the TN Dept of Ed and the
Nashville Symphony in March.

6 artist residencies in schools in East Tennessee connecting the arts to science curriculum for inclusive
classrooms of children with and without disabilities.

An Arts Camp in dance, music, literature and visual arts for children with and without disabilities
featuring the Cowboy culture at Volunteer State Community College.

The coordination of the Dulcimer Choir through the Blair School of Music for teens with Autism.

Provided exhibitions and/or performers for numerous conferences and special events focused on
disability, education or the arts throughout the State of Tennessee.