ROAD TO HOPE: COZAD-BATES HOUSE – UNIVERSITY CIRCLE
April 24, 2016
1:00pm - 4:00pm, 11508 Mayfield Road, Cleveland, OH 44106
FREE
ROAD TO HOPE at the COZAD-BATES HOUSE in University Circle is one of a series of free, all-ages performing arts events inspired by the triumphs of the Underground Railroad, a celebration of hope and powerful engagement with current day social justice issues. ROAD TO HOPE activities will take place in multiple Cleveland-area neighborhoods from January through June 2016, produced in conjunction with Cleveland Public Theatre’s third annual Station Hope celebration.
ROAD TO HOPE at the COZAD-BATES HOUSE in University Circle is presented by Restore Cleveland Hope, in partnership with University Circle Inc., Cleveland Public Theatre, Hon. Joe Cimperman and the City of Cleveland. The afternoon event will feature a program of theatre, dance, music and spoken word on site of the historic Cozad-Bates House. The free, all-ages event will culminate in the installation and dedication of a Bench by the Road - a national memorial history and community outreach initiative of the Toni Morrison Society.
Road to Hope and Station Hope are generously funded by the Our Town matching grant program of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Full event details and artists' info is below.
Road to Hope at the Cozad-Bates House
SUNDAY, APRIL 24th
1:00pm-4:00pm
A TASTE OF STATION HOPE…IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD!
Featuring:
Cleveland Public Theatre, Robin Lynn Pease & Kulture Kids, The Hue People, Djapo Cultural Arts Institute, Ruth Pangrace, Kalim Hill, Kevin Cronin, remarks by Joan Southgate, Hon. Joe Cimperman, Chris Ronayne and
the INSTALLATION & Dedication of
THE TONI MORRISON
BENCH BY THE ROAD
bench dedication @ 3:00pm
The Road to Hope at the Cozad-Bates House event will culminate in the installation of a Bench by the Road, a national memorial history and community outreach initiative of the Toni Morrison Society. This bench will be placed in front of the Cozad-Bates house at 11508 Mayfield Road in the University Circle neighborhood of Cleveland, through the support of Restore Cleveland Hope, University Circle Inc. and the initiative of Dr. Marilyn Mobley of Case Western Reserve University and the Toni Morrison Society. The location of the Cozad-Bates House was selected in recognition of the heroic freedom seekers who made the journey north to freedom along the Underground Railroad, those who passed through Cleveland and to those Cleveland residents who assisted them on their journey. The Toni Morrison Society Bench by the Road Project is the vision of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison. The Project was launched on February 18, 2006, on the occasion of Toni Morrison’s 75th Birthday. The name “Bench by the Road” is taken from Morrison’s remarks in a 1989 interview with World Magazine where she spoke of the absences of historical markers that help remember the lives of Africans who were enslaved:
“There is no place you or I can go, to think about …or recollect the absences of slaves; nothing that reminds us of the ones who made the journey and of those who did not make it. There is no suitable memorial or plaque or wreath or wall or park or skyscraper lobby. There’s no 300 foot tower. There’s no small bench by the road.” – Toni Morrison
Please join us for this special event and dedication. Convenient $2 parking is available across the street, accessible off E. 117th Street.
University Circle is also accessible via RTA bus and rapid transit, Little Italy-University Circle station.
Road to Hope: Cozad-Bates house press
Tye, Chris. “Performance Inspires at Road to Hope.” WKYC. 24 April 2016. Web. Click here to watch: http://www.wkyc.com/news/local/performance-inspires-at-road-to-hope/152248528
About Restore Cleveland HOPE & the Cozad-Bates House
Restore Cleveland Hope celebrates Cleveland’s anti-slavery past and the heroic spirit of the Underground Railroad. University Circle Inc., working closely with partners Restore Cleveland Hope and Western Reserve Historical Society, is working to raise funds for an anti-slavery interpretive center in a portion of the home. Restore Cleveland Hope offers education programs for children and adults and leads community dialogues about the UGRR, slavery and how that history affects us today. www.restoreclevelandhope.org
From left: The Historic Cozad-Bates House; The Bench by the Road – Illustration by Amie Albert; Joan Southgate speaking at Station Hope 2015
Road to Hope at the Cozad-Bates House is presented in conjunction with Cleveland Public Theatre’s Road to Hope and Station Hope 2016 celebration, presented in partnership with The City of Cleveland and Hon. Joe Cimperman. For more information about Station Hope & Road to Hope events near you, click below.
CLICK FOR INFORMATION ON ROAD TO HOPE events near you.
CLICK for information on STATION HOPE 2016 – including video trailer
ROAD TO HOPE AND STATION HOPE ARE SUPPORTED BY THE OUR TOWN GRANT PROGRAM OF THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS.
