Jessica grew up in the suburbs of the “experimental garden for Radical plants.” An ordained minister through the Universal Life Church, Jessica has completed over 500 hours of study in yoga as therapy, with a background in Ayurveda. She is trained in VaihAyasa Aerial Yoga, and uses the support of aerial silks in private and group sessions to bring deeper alignment and support on both emotional and physical levels. An Associate Polarity Practitioner, Jessica has been studying herbalism, and wildcrafting medicines since early 2014.
16Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County https://www.creativemoco.comSuzan.Jenkins@creativemoco.com(301) 565-3805
801 Ellsworth Dr
Silver Spring, MD 20910
United States
Carla Duran is an artist living in Germantown, MD. She was born and raised in Maryland along with her three brothers and one sister. She was introduced to all forms of art as a child and fell in love with studio art; since then, she has continued to work, study, and enjoy all forms of art. Her first artwork was presented in an art exhibit during her first art summer camp at the Black Rock Center for the Arts, and then later in Seneca Valley High School during her senior year. She attended Montgomery College and earned an Associates Degree in Art in 2019.
Sharon Gelman is a writer, editor, media producer, public speaker, and activist. She was the US managing editor and lead US interviewer for 200 Women: Who Will Change the Way You See the World (Chronicle, 2017; Hachette Audio, 2019). She conceived of and produced the Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales audiobook (Hachette, 2009), directed by Alfre Woodard and featuring twenty-six acclaimed performing artists, which won numerous awards including the Audie Awards for Best Audiobook of the Year and Best Multi-Voice Performance as well as a Grammy nomination.
Krissy Harris (they/them) is a dance artist and educator based in Maryland. They hold a MFA in Dance from the University of Maryland School of Theatre, Dance, & Performance Studies, where their dance research branched out into Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies, Journalism studies, and Digital Interdisciplinary Art Practice. They have a passion for dance teaching to a broad range of experience levels and age populations.
Sara Maddox is a Maryland-based artist who works in oil, charcoal, and pencil. She is a graduate of the Compass Atelier Master Artist Program. Much of Sara’s painting involves working from images from media, as well as the “real” world, to capture on canvas moments that are severed from the usual or expected context of movement, action, and/or narrative and reframe the images isolated in time. She also enjoys painting portraits, pets, and landscapes.
Miriam Mörsel Nathan’s work was seen in Creative Quest: Art from the Holocaust’s 2nd Generation, Howard Community College, Columbia, MD (2022). Her work will be exhibited in 2024 at the American University Museum, Katzen Art Center, Washington, DC as well as in Photography of the Holocaust: Then & Now, Cepa Gallery, Buffalo, NY. Her work was included in Drawing Discourse, 13th Annual International Contemporary Drawing Exhibition (2022), Juror Catherine Murphy.
A long time resident of Moco and teacher of art of all mediums. Now painting and teaching selectively. Plien Air painter in oils seeks new views that inspire nature and depict a connection to the natural and inner world of the viewer.
In 1984 Michael Friend and his sister Khandi started performing as the Soul In Motion Players. The debut performance was at Michael’s alma mater, Howard University during Black History Month. Original members included HU Fine Arts Department Grads Cheryl Butler Poole, Gregory H. Poole, Gisele Jackson, & Wanda Whiteside. The troupe began touring to other colleges and universities on the East Coast.
SIMPINC was performing famous works from highly acclaimed writers including the Last Poets, Maya Angelou, & James Baldwin.
Yordan Silvera is a multidisciplinary artist, designer and illustrator born in Havana. He studied fine art painting at Escuela San Alejandro, the Cuban National Academy of the Art, and graphic design at The Corcoran College of Art and Design.
Why are we here? To entertain. To bring joy. To foster community and learning through shared laughter. To lighten our shared burden of existence for a short while. Why comedy?Broadly defined and properly presented, comedy encompasses all of the human experience. It can make us laugh and make us cry. It can bring joy and it can bring anger. It makes us think and makes us forget. It exalts and ridicules. It can divert, and it can focus. Comedy levels life’s playing field. Why theater?