All Pawtucket All The Time

A Celebration of Theater, Dance, Music, New Media and Visual Arts. Premieres, Special Events, Artist Residencies and Free Exhibits

September 25 – November 13, 2010

PROVIDENCE, RI – FirstWorks announced it seventh season lineup today for the FirstWorks Festival 2010. The festival will draw artists from around the globe for a celebration of theater, dance, music, new media and visual arts centered in downtown Providence. A complete schedule of performances and tickets are now available at first-works.org.

This year’s festival kicks off on September 25^th at Providence Performing Arts Center with a mesmerizing mash-up of vintage comics and dance as Pilobolus – the Cirque du Soleil of the dance world – collides with Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Art Spiegelman. The festival culminates on November 13^th at the VMA Arts & Cultural Center with an electrifying performance by Sweet Honey In The Rock® featuring the New England premiere of “Indaba”, a musical dialogue between youth and elders that unites the first women of song with the Junior Providence Singers.

The Festival will span seven weeks and include innovative art and sound from new media artists in PIXILERATIONS [v.7], the New Media Fringe Festival @ FirstWorks, cutting-edge drama, direct from Ireland; and a vibrant 12-piece orchestra from New York City who will take salsa back to the street. Tickets are on sale now at first-works.org.

“This year’s FirstWorks festival unites the artistic talents of our city with the talents of exceptional artists and creators from the world’s stage,” said Kathleen Pletcher, Executive Artistic Director, FirstWorks. “Incredible new partnerships with the VMA Arts & Cultural Center, Culture Ireland, and the Taiwan Cultural Council have propelled the FirstWorks Festival to new heights in 2010. See, hear, feel, move, share—this is a festival that connects audiences to experience of the art of what’s new.”

About FirstWorks

FirstWorks connects art with audiences year-round through the exceptional vitality of artists’ first appearances, children’s first experiences with performance and the premiering of new works. FirstWorks was launched in 2004 as a vehicle to build community, reach underserved audiences, and present extraordinary arts programs that elevate Providence’s national profile. In the six years since, FirstWorks has produced ten groundbreaking arts festivals, attracted over 74,000 participants, and engaged more than 100 nonprofit community organizations and schools.