Warwick Summer Arts Festival features tours, workshops, parade

WARWICK-There is more to The Warwick Summer Arts Festival then watching performances. The Festival sponsors tours, workshops and the ever-popular Art Parade down the Main Street of the Village of Warwick. This year, there are three workshops as part of the ten-day arts celebration. DanaMaria Martin and Stacey Rosen will lead art-making sessions at the Warwick Community Center on July 10th and July 11th. On July 17th, singer/songwriter Holly Near will give a pre-concert workshop at Christ Episcopal Church on South Street. Art-making workshops are only $5 each, to off set the cost of supplies, and the Holly Near workshop is $10.00. Call now to reserve a space. On Saturday, July 10th, from 11:30 to 1:00 p.m., dancer/choreographer DanaMaria Martin will lead a Costume Making Workshop for all ages. Ms. Martin is using ANGELS as her theme to create a variety of winged beings. Participants will learn to make colorful creations using bamboo, material, paint and the like. There will be a wide collection of supplies available and people should bring their own material as well. For registration and information call 986-6890. On July 11h from 9:30 to 11:00 p.m. Stacey Rosen will lead another parade-inspired workshop: Poem Banners. Participants will design and create their own banners choosing from a wide range of poems as inspiration. In addition to a plethora of art supplies, Ms. Rosen brings wonderful collections of recycled goods from the Arts Materials Exchange, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to recycling materials for the arts. All ages are welcome. For registration and information call 986-0181. On Saturday, July 17th, the Festival presents SINGING FOR OUR LIVES: Changing one's self and the world through song, a workshop with Holly Near. Ms. Near has been a powerful voice in the social change movements over the last 30 years. From song festivals in war torn El Salvador to grand nights at Carnegie Hall, Near tells a delightful and inspirational story as well as invites us to celebrate our own journeys to consciousness. This event is hosted and co-sponsored by Christ Episcopal Church at 50 South Street To register call 987-9826. THE ART PARADE is an annual Mardi-grass like celebration of the arts that dances down Main Street in the Village of Warwick on the final day of the Warwick Summer Arts Festival. Participation in the workshops is not a requirement. Everyone is welcome to join in. The motto for the parade is "wear art, carry art, be art." This year's parade on July 18th begins at the corner of Main and Church Street, along side Lewis Park. Line up begins at 6:00 p.m., steps off at 6:30 p.m. and marches to Stanley Deming Park. Following the parade is a free concert by TOM CHAPIN and friends in a family oriented concert. For more information on the Warwick Summer Arts Festival call 845/987-9826 or visit our Web site at www.warwickarts.org. The WSAF is made possible with funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency, with additional funds from ShopRite of Warwick, The Town of Warwick, WVT Communications, Orange and Rockland Utilities, Orange County Tourism and The Village of Warwick.