CityStep Penn

ABOUT CITYSTEP
CityStep is a dance mentorship program led
by Penn undergraduate students. Every week,
teaching teams of 5-7 Penn undergraduates
travel to one of our five West Philadelphia partner
schools to mentor and choreograph routines with
elementary and middle school students.
introduces
West Philadelphia
CityStep
public school youth to
the performing arts as an outlet for creative
self-expression, a tool for building self-esteem,
and a means to mutual understanding.
CityStep was founded in 1983 at Harvard University
by Sabrina Peck. In 2004, Laura Weidman Powers,
a CityStep Harvard alum, teamed up with two Penn
undergraduates, Alicia Marini ’06 and Martha Mijes
’06, to establish CityStep Penn as a student
organization serving the West Philadelphia
community.
CITYSTEP COMPANY 2012-2013
T eresa A n
K enya A nderson
L eah A pple
I brahim A yub
D ani elle B arth
L ara B erns *
M ichael B uzi nover
P hi li ne C h eng
E lla C oh en
H annah D ardashti
J anan D ave
E mi ly F oong
K elly F urukawa *
M aria G uadagni no *
D rew H asson
R ebecca H ayes
G eorgia J ames
T i ffany J ordan
E lizabeth K atz *
S ophi e K im
M argot K onig
F abriana L arancuent
K ai T ai L i
C aroli ne M i n
J ami e P lanch er
G rant R oper *
S ami r S hah
I sabelle S un
M anon V ergerio
C assandra V ickers
P atrick Y ang
M ason Y ao
O livia Z deric
*D enot es H ead T each er
EXECUTIVE BOARD
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS
MARKETING
SPRING EVENTS COORDINATORS
FALL EVENTS COORDINATORS /
EXTERNAL LIAISONS
LEAH APPLE, PHILINE CHENG
ELIZABETH KATZ, ISABELLE SUN
JANAN DAVE
DREW HASSON, MANON VERGERIO
LARA BERNS, CAROLINE MIN
LETTER FROM
DIRECTORS
Founded
in
1986,
the
Philadelphia Mural Arts Program
unites communities through a collaborative process of
creating art that transforms spaces and individual lives. It
9th Annual
CityStep
is through this aura that we present to you our
Show. In
exploring this city’s artistic legacy,
students and teachers have worked with each other and for
each other to transform these murals from a
two-dimensional realm to a three-dimensional performance
on the stage.
By
capturing the history and messages behind
the murals, this show celebrates
expresses hope for the
Throughout
throughout
Philadelphia’s
city’s future.
rich past, and
the course of this year,
Philadelphia
on their
CitySteppers travelled
own Mural Arts Tour,
and the magic of the murals transported them to different
worlds.
Harnessing
the power of narrative,
CityStep
students have engaged with the stories behind the murals
while infusing their choreography with expressions of their
own personalities.
We
hope you appreciate the hard work and creative energy
that have enabled the formation of our final
performance
— CityStep Presents: INTRAMURAL.
This show would not be possible without the dedication of
CityStep teachers and students alike; we feel so grateful
and honored to have led such a talented, committed group
individuals who constantly remind us of why we love
serving this organization.
year extraordinary.
Thank
All our Love,
Leah Apple and Philine Cheng
you for having made this
of
CITYSTEP PRESENTS:
INTRAMURAL
ACT 1
ART & SOLE...........................................JACKSON AFTERSCHOOL
COMIC BOOK..............................................COMEGYS 4TH GRADE
PICTURE THIS.................................................................CITYLIGHTS
CHOREOGRAPHED BY: JAMIE PLANCHER
LOVE LETTER......................................................HUEY 5TH GRADE
-INTERMISSION-
ACT 2
WE THE YOUTH..............................................CITYSTEP TEACHERS
CHOREOGRAPHED BY: KELLY FURUKAWA
BRIDGING THE GAP...............................KIPP WEST 8TH GRADE
ONE WORLD.....................................................................CITYLIGHTS
CHOREOGRAPHED BY: ELLA COHEN
SOUTH PHILLY MUSICIANS.......................POWEL 4TH GRADE
FINALE......................................................................................CITYSTEP CHOREOGRAPHED BY: KELLY FURUKAWA
CITYSTEP SIGNATURE..................................CITYSTEP & ALUMNI
ANDREW JACKSON SCHOOL | AFTERSCHOOL
ART & SOLE
-TEACHERSGRANT ROPER*
DANI BARTH
JANAN DAVE
MANON VERGERIO
OLIVIA ZDERIC
-CITYSTEPPERSTYKIA BENDOLPH
TYNASIA BENDOLPH
CHRISTINA JOHNSON
MARKIMA FRSIBY
IMAND MASON
KHALIYAH SISTRONK
INAYAH PATTERSON
DARREA BROWN
SKYE ROSARIO
In 2009, Mural Arts Big Picture students
created “Art and Sole”, a project
consisting of 100 custom-designed
sneakers inspired by the students’
interpretation of Gandhi’s words, “you must
be the change you wish to see in the world.”
This year, Jackson students, motivated
both by Gandhi and by the designers of the
shoes, have created their own work of art
to bring to the stage!
BENJAMIN B. COMEGYS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL | 4TH GRADE
COMIC BOOK
-TEACHERSMARIA GUADAGNINO*
ELLA COHEN
EMILY FOONG
TIFFANY JORDAN
ISABELLE SUN
PATRICK YANG
-CITYSTEPPERSKEVIN ANDINO
ISMAIL COLES
ANTONEE DAVENPORT
COURTNEY DAVIS
DESTINY FELDER
KHALIAH GILL
LATEEF HADDAD
DENZEL JONES
SIANI LONG
QUDISIYYAH MCCRAE
JAMEL MOSELEY
SANAIYA MUNDEY
MARCELLE PRITCHETTE
DENALI ROWE
At
34th and Haverford
is the “Comic Book Project:
Finding Mantua” mural. In creating this
mural, students used comic book narratives
the intersection of
to tell personal stories as well as those
of their neighborhoods.
The
mural presents
a map of the neighborhood supported by
images of local and fictional superheroes.
Inspired
by this mural and its message, the
students of
Comegys
searched for their
inner superheroes in order to fight
injustices like peer pressure and bullying
that face them everyday.
SAMUEL B. HUEY SCHOOL | 5TH GRADE
LOVE LETTER
In 2009, the Mural Arts Program and
artist Stephen Powers collaborated to
create “Love Letter”, a public art
project consisting of a series of 50
rooftop murals from 45th to 63rd
streets along the Market Corridor. The
murals collectively express a love letter
from a boy to a girl, from an artist to
his hometown, and from local residents
to their neighborhood of
Philadelphia. Huey
West
students embrace
the sentiment behind this mural series,
exploring both their commitment to one
another and their devotion to the
city of
Philadelphia.
-TEACHERSKELLY FURUKAWA*
TERESA AN
KENYA ANDERSON
IBRAHIM AYUB
MICHAEL BUZINOVER
SOPHIE KIM
JAMIE PLANCHER
REBECCA HAYES
-CITYSTEPPERSAMYRIE ALLEN
RODNEY BELL JR
NAJI CARTER
JADEN FOSTER
SADIR GREEN
KEVIN HALLAGER
GRACE HARDAWAY
MICHE HARRIS
BRENDA HUNTER-MILLS
ANTHONY JACKSON
KEYANNA JOHNSON
AMIR LIPSCOMB
DIMIR MATHIS
AMIR NURRIDDIN
MONET OWENS-CARVALHO
WENDELL REDMON
AUSTIN SHERIFF
HANEEF SMITH
KIPP WEST | 8TH GRADE
BRIDGING THE GAP
-CITYSTEPPERSZAKIA ALKHATIB
DEJA ALLEN
MICHAELIA BRYANT
SHANIYA CHERRY
DAESHA DANIELS
CALLENE GRAHAM
FRANCIS KING HARVEY
ZAHIRAH MILLER
MONET RIDDICK
EGYPT RYDER
MARJANII WALTON
-TEACHERSLARA BERNS*
GEORGIA JAMES
MARGOT KONIG
CAROLINE MIN
Despite
the ancestral relationship and
West
African immigrants and existing African
American communities of Southwest
Philadelphia, the two groups experienced a
steep rise in tension in 2007. Inspired by their
collective desire to overcome these hostilities,
the “Bridging the Gap” mural was created to
build connections between the two communities.
KIPP West performs this account of conflict
underlying cultural connection shared by
and reconciliation through dance in the hopes
of furthering the objective of the mural
—
promote tolerance and understanding.
to
SAMUEL POWEL ELEMENTARY | 4TH GRADE
SOUTH PHILLY
MUSICIANS
As part of its commitment to the community,
WXPN partnered with the Mural Arts Program
in 2004 to create the “Sounds of Philadelphia”, a
series designed to celebrate Philadelphia’s diverse
music legacy. The “South Philly Musicians” mural
honors Philly’s own musicians of the Bandstand era
including Frankie Avalon, Chubby Checker, Al
Martino, Bobby Rydell, Fabian, Eddie Fisher, and
Jerry Blavat. Through their dance, the students of
Powel pay tribute both to Philadelphia’s musical
heritage and to the growing cultural influence of
music in the region.
-TEACHERSELIZABETH KATZ*
HANNAH DARDASHTI
DREW HASSON
KAI TAI LI
SAMIR SHAH
CASSANDRA VICKERS
MASON YAO
-CITYSTEPPERSARI ABBOTT
CAROLE ABNER
VIOLET BADER-DANESI
KEITH BROWN
NAJEER CLANTON
AASIYA CRAFT-WILLIAMS
ZOE CRAWLEY
BEYONCE DUKES
AYDEN GARNES
NASIRA GASKINS
MAKAYLAH GOLDWIRE-THOMAS
ASIA HILL
AIDAN JEFFRIES
ELIJAH JUTZI
LAMIRAH LOWERY
JAIYA LUNDY
CHRISTOPHER MARTIN
AHMIR MCALILEY-GRANT
WILLIAM MCBRIDE
MAKEDA MCFARLANE
JABARI MCKIE
NIANI PHILLIPS
SHARIF SALIM
ARIYANA-E THOMAS
AMIRA TUCKER
SYED UDDIN
DAMON WALKER
CARLOS WARREN
CITYLIGHTS
PICTURE THIS
“Picture This”, #3 in the “Love Letter”
series, is a rooftop mural on 52nd and
Market best viewed when traveling
westbound on the Market-Frankford
line. In creating these murals, Artist
Stephen Powers, a West Philadelphia
Native, said that he wanted to create
“a letter for one with meaning for
all.”
CITYSTEP TEACHER PIECE
As part of his CityKids
Foundation Program, artist
Keith Haring collaborated with
students from the Brandywine
Workshop to create the “We the
Youth” mural. Built in 1987, the
mural still stands today at 2147
Ellsworth Street.
WE THE YOUTH
CITYLIGHTS
ONE WORLD
The “One World” mural overlooks the
playground of the Independence Charter
School at 16th and Lombard. Members
of the school’s community, inmates at
a state correctional facility, and
artists from the Mural Arts Re-entry
program collaborated to create this
mural— a celebration of the diversity
and communion of people across the
world.
OLIVIA,
We are so proud of CityStep Penn
and all that you do for the
students.
You make a difference.
-Kate Cronan and Steve Zderic
Dear
Lara,
Keep
smiling
and
keep
dancing
your
way
to
many
more
milestones!
We
are
so
proud
of
you!
Love,
Mommy,
Daddy,
Landon,
Cameron,
Alana
and
Grandma
And
congrats
to
CityStep
on
an
amazing
performance!!!
PHILINE,
CONGRATULATIONS ON FOUR FULFILLING AND JOYFUL
YEARS IN CITYSTEP!
Mom, Dad, Phoebe,
and
Love,
Phillip
CITYSTEP 2012-2013
RIDE OR DIE.
Caroline, Emily, and Janan,
Congratulations on a spectacular
performance!
Love, Family in St. Louis
To our shining star,
Congrats on you and the Comegys students on your 2nd CityStep
Show! We are so proud of you!
Love,
Mom, Dad, Frankie, Vicki, Katie, Annie, and Lil Nugz
P.S. you’re the favorite…don’t tell anyone – Mom and Dad
The Plancher Family
celebrates CITYSTEP
and its
INTRAMURAL show.
Congratulations to all
of the participants for a
year of hard work and
DANCE
Caroline,
Emily,
and Janan,
and to
themselves
.
commitment to
Congratulations on a spectacular
performance!Jill, Kevin, Brian
and
MLouis
egan
Love, Family
in St.
Caroline, Margot, Lara,
and Georgia:
Who runs the world?
GIRLS!
Congratulations on an
amazing show and year!
Love, Family in St. Louis
CONGRATULATIONS CITYSTEP
AND
ELLA COHEN
www.fastfreshandsimple.com
SHOUTOUTS
Jackson, we love you and can't wait to
perform with you!
-Love your Teachers
nii
arja
to M
k
c
lu
!
Good and KIPP
WE LOVE YOU TWITCHY
TERESA! DEY YOU GOOO!
FROM JANKY, CRUSTY, AND
RATCHET
ie (and all of
Congratulations Jam ys are so
CityStep), you gu domus for
e back to
awesome!!! Com
xox, Rachel
xo
dinner!!
?
Step
in City
'
in
c
n
a
Philine nd't say I hate it!
Ca
oop!
Boop! B
h er
h e Ot
T
,
e
v
o
L
2Chengz
BERN!!
BABY
ou
, BERN
love y
To Lara ll 12 forever,
Onda Fa loads :)
Congratulations Elizabeth!
Your dedication to CityStep
inspires us all!
To o
Thank ur favorite
s fo
Orth
r
Love a making us ofox,
lways
, 232 proud!
S!!
ITY STEPPER
C
IT
in!!
K
C
M
e
RO
aroli n
y you C
ll
ia
c
e
p
s
E
To all our Huey gals: WE ARE CRAZY IN LOVE WITH YOU!
Jackson, you put the step
in CitySTEP with your amazing
footwork and swag!
- Your Teachers
To our favorit
e Orthofo
x, so
proud of yo
u!
To Philine: SHAKE WHAT
PRISCILLA GAVE YA!
Love, Amy
n't
s! Do
ngrat
o
,
C
ia
!
sters
Georg
,
ia
KIPP
g
r
r
o
To ou ot to ""Ge POP!"""
forg
POP POP
1111 - so much swag in one apartment. So proud!
Love, the uncoordinated one.
SHOUTOUTS
kids are
Halle Ber
Patty, I s ry, hallelujah. Ho
ee ya, b
lla
east.
<3 you!
amazing
To Janan: you’rethe dance
f
of
both on and
ck!!
oor, good lu
COMEGYS! You ars! Keep up
ck st
SUPERHERO ro work!
th e great
Lara,
You are amazing and inspiring!
Good luck at the show and I can't
wait to see ya shine!
Love,
Sophie
ines
tambour
r
u
yo
t
Ge
fl
caroline min, you rock! keep up
the good twerk tila tequila!!
<3, spo
ls!
Powel Ow THETo the me
FIRE n of H
BURN uey:
YOU
HIT
Kipp WEST! We know you'll
""R
This Party"" in High School ock
!
Good luck!
to our favorite gorilla-doctor
who diagnoses #parched
hipsters!
THE S WHEN
FLOOR DANCE
!
!
egy's!!
t Com
u
b
e
d
our
!
ck in y
Good lu You be famous atty TifJor
P
Maria
Emily Is
<3 Ella
’T
, DON
TAI
Elizabeth,
KAI
l
You're the best! OMG FALL OVER
owe
ur P
o
y
Love,
m
- fro students
Sophie
Lara,
ugh to
e well eno
uldn't danc
co
I
y
I know!
rr
er
o
S
e best danc
th
l
il
st
win. You're
r one
umbe
th er n
o
r
b
l
sou
ason,
M
freaking proud
Elizabeth we are so life. We love
ck at
of you. You ro
tau
u
you, ta omega
hey CCCCAARROLLLINNEEE
lemme see that bo
oty work
bo-bo-bo booty
WORK!
Huey,
proud
of yo
all s
u!!!
o
Thank amazing and t! You are
you f
alent
or a
ed!
great
year.
Jamie
I'm so
Philine is ok and spends all her
time watching YouTube videos of
Ellen Degeneres.
Love, Sophie and Scott
THANK YOU
We
CITYSTEP DONORS
would like to thank the donors who generously
supported our annual holiday mailer campaign.
Your
donation helped make this show possible!
CITYSTEP SUPPORTER ($1-$25)
Michael Lacivita
CITYSTEP FRIEND ($26 - $50)
Max Apple and Talya Fishman
Lisa and Ephraim Dardashti
Elise Furukawa
Randall Rosenberg
Beth Konig
CITYSTEP PATRON ($51 - $100)
Brenda Bass Roper
Peter and Priscilla Cheng
Ira Cohen
Kate Cronan
Margaret Cronan
Ahn-Chun and Paul Min
Stephanie Sklar
CITYSTEP FELLOW (Over $100)
Vivian Adams
Michael and Rona Berns
Dave Gloss
and
Kevin Colahan
THANK YOU
PARTNER SCHOOLS
MS. KAPLAN
MS. KOERBLER
MR. PLAYO
MS. WALKER
MS. WATERS
TEACHER BECKY
Andrew Jackson
KIPP West
Samuel B. Huey
Benjamin B. Comegys
Samuel B. Huey
Samuel Powel
OTHER SUPPORTERS
Dawn Blandford
Nora Blumenstein
Bob Capewell
CHAC
CityStep Graduate Board
Hope Cohen
Dhamaka
Beth Kephart
Jason Lau
Timothy Lee
Rebecca Lipperini
National Dance Institute
Mark Pan
Sabrina Peck
Penn Newman Center
*All
Chris Perella
Perelman Quad
Philadelphia 76ers
Onda Latina
Megan Pippett
Angela Reason
Evan Robinson
SAC
Jessie Spellman
Jonah Stern
Tracy Strauss
Strictly Funk
Pascale Tam
Shira Walinsky
information pertaining to the murals and the
Program
Philadelphia Mural Arts
was taken from www.muralarts.org
GET I NVOLVED
FOR PENN UNDERGRADUATES:
Interested in becoming a CityStep Teacher? Look
for Auditions in Fall 2013!
out
FOR PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL
TEACHERS & ADMINISTRATORS:
Interested in bringing CityStep to your school?
Please email us at citystepboard@gmail.com - we
are always looking for students to serve!
FOR GENERAL QUESTIONS &
INFORMATION:
Email
us at citystepboard@gmail.com or
check out our website: www.citysteppenn.org
Tax-deductible donations may be sent to the following address.
Checks should be made payable to “Trustees of the University of
Pennsylvania” with “CityStep” written on the memo line
CityStep
c/o Civic House
3914 Locust Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104
/CityStepPenn
/PennCityStep