Ariela Martin Photo
Picket Dance Crew from New Haven Academy.
Carole Richardson has a big dream: to end youth violence in New Haven. She started pursuing it with a dance showcase Monday evening
Carole Richardson.
Well over 100 children, teens, and adults came out to Hillhouse High School’s auditorium see the showcase to end youth violence.
Richardson’s showcase is part of her work for the “Future Project,” an organization that connects young adults with urban schoolkids work on community projects over the course of a year. ( Click here and here to read about the Future Project and Richardson’s project.) Richardson’s Future Project was the first showcased of this school year.
The message on a banner for the event: ““Give Peace A Chance & Just Dance.”
Daryln M. Whiten.
The event raised $333.10 for Save Our Sons Inc. (SOS), “a youth advocacy and support program for anti-violence and anti-drugs [efforts]. We use a lot of multimedia performance arts. Hip-hop can be used as a medium to interject the cure into the culture, and to extract from the evils of the communities,” said Daryl M. Whiten of SOS. The money will go to funding a permanent space for SOS in New Haven.
Jedi, a rap artist based out of Hamden.
John-Michael Parker, “dream director” at Richard R. Green High School.
“New Haven is a good place, but a lot of the times, kids don’t have things to do, so [they] get involved with drugs and guns,” said Richardson, now a senior at New Haven Academy.
Colasia Claxton.
The Elm City Dance Collective.
Featured in the dance performance were youth artists from all over the city, including students from High School in the Community, New Haven Academy, and Wilbur Cross. “I went to each individual school, like Wilbur Cross, and I found actual dance troupes. I was looking for youth talent, and I’m really happy with the performances they put on tonight. It shows what amazing talent we have here,” Richardson said.
Frankie Chappo.
“This has been a phenomenal night, and we definitely were not expecting this,” said Whitten. We are so blessed to have Carole helping us out, and are so happy she’s so passionate about this.”
Ariela Martin, a student at Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School, is an Independent contributing reporter.