International Festival Of Arts & Ideas Announces More Programming

The International Festival of Arts & Ideas, now in the fifth week of digital and live programming of its 25th Anniversary Season, announces details of Virtual Box City, the extension of Arts on Call, and additional KeyBank Food events.

"We are so excited that Box City, one of the Festival's most popular community and family-oriented programs, kicks off this week in a digital format that will provide a fun and educational experience for some of our youngest New Haven residents," said Co-Directors Liz Fisher and Tom Griggs. "We are also thrilled by the enormous response so far to the Arts on Call and KeyBank Food events, which directly support local artists and businesses."

Virtual Box City

One of the longest-running Festival programs, Box City invites children of all ages to create a visionary, temporary, recyclable model city of the future, advised and assisted by local architects, makers, and city planners. This year, there are two ways to participate:

Box City @ Home: young entrepreneurs can construct a building with craft supplies and recyclable materials found at home, and submit a photo to the City Plan.

Box City: Minecraft Edition: Anyone with the Windows 10 version of Minecraft can join in constructing a virtual Box City on the Minecraft server at https://boxcity.org.

The Festival will host a series of three interactive, online events, beginning with a Minecraft tutorial on Saturday, June 6, 12-2PM; and continuing with the groundbreaking on June 13, 12-2PM; and concluding with the ribbon cutting on June 20, 12-2PM.

Box City is presented in partnership with Pickard Chilton with additional support from Suzio York Hill.

Arts on Call

Due to popular demand, the Festival's Arts on Call program, which connects New Haven residents with local artists who are available to perform socially distant, outdoor performances, has been extended through June 14. To date, 36 individual artists or small ensembles who are isolating together have participated, with 65 performances booked to date. All performance fees go directly to the performing artists.

The Arts on Call itinerary is updated regularly online (https://www.artidea.org/artsoncall).

Additionally, in partnership with Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center, and with funding from the the State of Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development Office of the Arts, the Festival is sponsoring a series of Arts on Call performances for health care, emergency services, and other frontline workers who are supporting and protecting the New Haven community. This special calendar of performances will be announced.

New Haven Arts on Call is modeled after Sidewalk Serenades, a program created in March 2020 by Creative Alliance in Baltimore, and is presented with support from the Elizabethan Club of Yale University.

WSHU is a media sponsor of the 2020 International Festival of Arts & Ideas, including Arts on Call.

KeyBank Food Events

To date, the Festival has hosted five virtual KeyBank Food events, with The Stack & Black Hog Brewing, Tavern on State, Ordinary & Roia, 116 Crown, and Zinc, with nearly 500 New Haven residents opening their virtual windows to each other on Zoom. All event fees go directly to the individual participating establishments.

There are three upcoming KeyBank Food Events:

Cooking with Sanctuary Kitchen
Saturday, June 6, 7PM

Join Sanctuary Kitchen for a mezze and dessert cooking class led by Syrian refugee chef Nour. Pick up the ingredients from Sanctuary Kitchen, and then cook along with Nour from home to make Muhammara, a bold and tangy spread with bulgur, red peppers, walnuts and pomegranate; and Qatayif, sweet ricotta filled pancakes with an orange blossom syrup.

Cooking Italian: Eating, Laughing, and Living Around the Table
With Skappo Italian Wine Bar
Saturday, June 13, 7PM

Join the Skappo family for a night of cooking, singing Italian songs, and more. The menu includes pasta with fresh-made tomato sauce, braciole, and tiramisu.

Just confirmed--details to come!
KeyBank Food Event with Soul de Cuba
Saturday, June 27, 7PM

More information about KeyBank Food series events and registration is available at www.artidea.org/food-experiences.

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