Program areas at Silk Road Rising
EDUCATION: Silk Road Rising centers storytelling to promote learning and address complex social issues within and between diverse communities. We proudly offer this innovative programming to Chicagos classrooms, community centers, senior centers, social service agencies, park districts, and universities.We accomplished the following during the January-June 2023 fiscal year: -Delivered 2 EPIC and 5 EPIC Spark residencies, serving 205 students-Brought our Black Teen Lives Matter videos into Chicago classrooms and delivered this program to 293 participants-Introduced 7 elementary school students to classic myths from the historic Silk Road through two Myths to Drama residencies-Offered 2 EPIC for English Language Learners to our community partners, reaching 39 New Americans
Other Program Services include a variety of programs including creative conversations, planning for a Little Amal program, and developing the polycultural institute.
Theatre - The Organization continued work on three new live theatre projects with the intent to produce them in the coming years. Each of the live theatre projects explores an untold Silk Road story; examining concepts of home, rootedness, and healing. The three projects are titled, The Art of Aphasia, EVE, and Road Less Traveled.
Community Arts - The Organization has made a special commitment to the West Ridge neighborhood on Chicagos far north side. West Ridge is one of the most ethnically, racially, religiously, linguistically, and economically diverse communities in the United States, a truemicrocosm of the 21st-century American mosaic. This past year the Organization facilitated storytelling programming in the neighborhood and amplified the voices of Chicagolands immigrant and refugee communities.