Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music announces Grand Opening plans for its new Old Town School East Building, located at 4545 N. Lincoln Avenue directly across the street from its current Lincoln Square home. The community is invited to celebrate the Grand Opening and first day of classes in the new East Building with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting and ritual blessing of the bricks on Monday, January 9, 2012, followed by building tours and an all-day community sing-along.
The Grand Opening kicks off a celebration of the School's 55th anniversary, starting January 9 and continuing for 55 days. All three locations in the Old Town School campus (the pair on Lincoln Avenue, and the original site at 909 W. Armitage Avenue) will participate in the 55-day celebration, which features specially priced concerts and free classes and workshops, all demonstrating the wide range of the School's offerings. Both on-going weekly series as well as one-day-only special events are highlighted, including:· The launch of the Global Dance Party series, which, similar to the City's popular Summerdance program, will offer live music for instruction followed by open dance, in styles ranging from Samba and Tango to Flamenco and Line Dancing - every Friday night
· World Premieres of works commissioned by the Old Town School by Paseos Jarochos, Anne-Marie Akin, Jennifer Guglielmi, Nomi Epstein and Tom Stevens
· Concerts headlined by Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Joe Henry, the Pine Leaf Boys, David Bromberg, Beppe Gambetta and Peter Ostrushko, George Kahumoku, Jr. and Keoki Kahumoku
· Special themed concerts including a "Beatles Complete" marathon concert series featuring every single Beatles song; "Pueblo Latino" with music and dance from throughout Latin America; and a "Forever 27 Club" tribute to Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Brian Jones, Robert Johnson, Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse, who all passed away at the age of 27
· An MLK Day Celebration with Chicago favorite Ella Jenkins
· "Fear of Commitment" series offering single session courses in vocal performance, Celtic music, bluegrass, and West African dance, for all ages and abilities
· Free "WiggleArts" art-making classes for children under 2; dance for kids under 5; teen open mic; singing for the whole family
· Master Classes and "Drop-In" classes featuring blues, jazz, middle eastern music, ukulele, samba, hip hop dancing, guitar and songwriting
· A campus-wide "Come For To Sing Homecoming" extravaganza featuring the very first teacher of the Old Town School, Frank Hamilton, joined by other former teachers, all co-hosted by Ed Holstein and Jimmy Tomasello with a special set by The Pickin' Bubs
About the Old Town School
The Old Town School of Folk Music, considered the largest community school of the arts in the United States, teaches and celebrates music and cultural expressions rooted in the traditions of diverse American and global communities. Founded in 1957, the School offers 700 accredited classes in music, dance, theater and visual arts that span a wide range of artistic genres. The School's critically acclaimed concerts showcase some of the finest and most diverse local and touring artists in our intimate and acoustically superb hall. Ticket prices remain among the most affordable in the city and special events like the Chicago Folk & Roots Festival and World Music Wednesdays make music accessible to all with free and reduced-priced programs.
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