On Saturday, August 26, 2017, families are invited to join us for Make It Move!, the latest in our Make It! festival series. Create, listen, build, and learn as a family through stories, art, nature, and design! Each month we explore new themes with interactive activities for children and their caregivers.

As the summer winds down, let’s keep moving! Design moveable creations with our teaching artists, ArchforKids, learn a new dance move, and more. Make It Move! will feature a performance by The Brandon Project with spoken word artist Marcus John.

Friends of the High Line (FHL): For those unfamiliar with your work, how would you describe it? How did you get started?
The Brandon Project (TBP): The Brandon Project is an organization designed on building healthy relationships. We achieve this goal by providing a safe haven for the youth of the local communities affected by their destructive environment. It is centered on the Performing Arts, which showcases their talent through singing, dancing, acting, spoken word, and other forms of artistic expression. The Brandon Project was created in honor of my precious nephew, Brandon Romero, who died tragically in 2011 in a domestic dispute.

FHL: What kind of stories do you feel your work tells? How does it tell those stories to young people specifically?
TBP: When people see us working together, it represents unity, delivering a message of hope and trust that ultimately shows young adults that they can do better for themselves. When my students learn about my nephew’s story, about his death and how he played a major part in the formation of this program, they become excited and feel like they’re part of his legacy. Our program is designed to reach out specifically to those who may be vulnerable to peer and/or domestic violence. With every new student that enrolls in the Brandon Project, one more life is positively influenced.

FHL: Tell us a little about what you have planned for Make It! What would you like attendees to take away from your performance?
TBP: Through the Make It Move program, our plans are to raise awareness on bullying and the negative effects and consequences on others and how to learn how to diminish its existence through dance. I would like for all those in attendance to gain enough confidence for themselves and not be intimidated by the negative influence and mindsets of others.

FHL: What makes the High Line as a venue unique or challenging to you and your work?
TBP: Using the High Line as a venue for our performances is exciting to us. The High Line is more than just a park, operating as a cross space between education platforms, cultural events, and art all while showing the use of public space as an architectural landscape.

Learn more about The Brandon Project, and how it came to be, here.

Make It Move!
10AM – 1PM
On the High Line at 16th St.
Rain or shine
For children ages 0-12 (and their caregivers)

SUPPORT

High Line Families is supported, in part, with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City Council.