ARTIVIST – A PERSON WHO CHANGES THE WORLD BY PENETRATING THE COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS
Art is why I get up in the morning
but my definition ends there
and it doesn’t seem fair
that I’m living for something I can’t even define
there you are right there
in the meantime
–Ani DiFranco
In its 12th year, Art as Action pushes boundaries. It is a place were people come together – where humanity is accessible. Speaking with Sarah, it is clear this is her passion. Leversee is a like a Renaissance woman or Jill of many trades. She is the Artistic Director of Art as Action, has been an Adjunct Professor, international company dancer/choreographer and has over a decade of experience in branding, advertising, graphic design and non-profit management. Her life goal/dream is to run Art as Action full-time and to house it in its own building complete with studio space.
My life’s work is to create a safe, nurturing space for people to discover the power of creativity and uncover their own creative potential. That space is where we can connect as humans, regardless of our differences, and express our truth. – Sarah Leversee
Around the same time as her uncle was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Sarah Leversee was injured. As she puts it, “I was deeply betrayed by dance.” She took this betrayal, and turned it into vigor, courage, progress and success.
Sarah is a Stanley J. Wertheimer Fellow for the Dance for PD ® Program. Art as Action’s Denver-based Reconnect with your Body Dance Classes are based on the Dance for PD ® model originated by Mark Morris Dance and Brooklyn Parkinson Group. The classes offer people the ability to explore the power of dance, creativity and artistic expression through movement. No dance experience is required.
It is clear Sarah sees her dance and involvement in the community as a driven must. She spends many of her days working in her virtual office of Red Rock Coffee House in Boulder. It is here that she conducts her business and freelance non-profit branding/advertising work while also promoting Act as Action on line fund raisers. Between choreographing for new shows and coordinating with collaborators, Sarah also teaches and takes dance classes.
Her newest work bridges healing through movement while pushing the boundaries of creativity. both/and will run both December 5 and 6 at The Dairy Center Performance Space in Boulder, Colorado. This collective will include dancers, poets, musician, visual artists and aerialists as well as members from the Reconnect With Your Body class.
Are you new to Boulder? New to Denver? Looking for a forum where variety creates commonality? Go see a show, see the people who are penetrating the collective consciousness and making the world better one artivist at a time. Visit Art as Action and get creative!
W. Celeste Davis Stragand: Published author, showcased artist and local Denverite, W. Celeste Davis Stragand is not new to the art world. Her passion for delving into the root of existence and movement will challenge and praise both choreographers and the audience. A graduate of Texas A&M University, Celeste holds two bachelor of arts degrees, one in Chemistry and the other in English. She is also a graduate of Naropa University holding a Masters of Fine Arts in Writing and Poetics from the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. A former national slam team poet, Celeste is a graduate of the Downtown Denver Partnership Leadership Program and sits on the American Institute of Architects Colorado board. Her passion and enthusiasm for the kinetic arts will frolic and frenzy through the upcoming season of performances with many hopes for an encore!