Page 65 - APAP - Inside Arts - Conference 2020

The U.S.-Mexico border wall is the subject of Molly Clark’s work.
My Action Learning Project is to create cross-border connection and unity through activating the performing arts landscapes of San Diego and Baja Mexico. This
has culminated in Choir! Choir! Choir!, a concert that will engage artists in forming a bi-national choir where audience members will learn a song together and sing to each other in Border Field State Park in the U.S., and Playas de Tijuana in Mexico through the border wall. My hopes for the project are that it illuminates how we can all can conceive of performing arts experiences to be more border-less, and the multiple meanings that word may have. It forced me to create an event that abandoned traditional mechanics for performance, and to embrace a wholly participatory event that removes nearly all barriers for anyone who is compelled to be involved. By making the audience the artists we restore the power to the people, and through the configuration of a choir, we exemplify the strength of our voices together.
Although there has been some progress, I still think there is a significant representation crisis in arts leadership, especially as it relates to people of color and women in leadership positions. In the context of our current political climate, those voices need to be represented (and amplified) at all tables – now more than ever. I think the qualities by which we have validated leadership in the past through
recruitment processes may not speak to the needs of our communities today, and that will take a fairly significant cultural shift to change. I believe we are all responsible for critically investigating who gets into leadership positions and why.
Leadership is understanding the immense privilege and responsibility you have in representing your community. Whether that means the artists that occupy your spaces, the people who sit in your audience, or
the opportunities you create for the community to engage in the process of making and presenting art. It means going beyond the standard operating mode to thoughtfully restructure and re-envision the access points for our work.
My childhood cello teacher Carina Voly. She is currently the director of the San Diego State University Community Music School. She approaches leadership with equal parts strength and compassion, and has dedicated her life to making music education more accessible for all children regardless of their socio- economic status.
CONFERENCE 2020 INSIDE ARTS 63
JOANNA SZU