We’re excited to share the line-up of incredible performers for the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Philanthropy at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture on May 3, 2023. To get your tickets to the Celebration, please visit www.thecommunityfoundation.org/celebration.
After School Dance Fund/Baila4Life
The ASDF initiative aims to create a consistent, safe, equitable and inclusive space for students, free of bullying, where they can participate in a positive group activity with peers. Participants learn the steps and the cultural background of Latin dancing and showcase their skills through choreographed performances at the culmination of the program. Through this process, students discover the importance of working hard towards a goal as well as living a healthy lifestyle. Latin dance has become a vehicle for increased cultural awareness and school pride, while also promoting exercise and having fun. ASDF believes that these learned qualities help each student become a more confident person, leading to better academic performance in school, and paving the way to opportunities in higher education and beyond.
Christylez Bacon
Christylez Bacon is a GRAMMY® Nominated Progressive Hip-Hop artist and multi-instrumentalist from Southeast, Washington, DC. As a performer, Christylez multi-tasks between various instruments such as the West African djembe drum, acoustic guitar, and the human beat-box (oral percussion), all while continuing the oral tradition of storytelling through his lyrics.
With a mission towards cultural acceptance and unification through music, Christylez is constantly pushing the envelope – from performances at the National Cathedral, to becoming the first Hip-Hop artist to be featured at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, composing and orchestrating an entire concert for a 12-piece orchestra commissioned by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Smithsonian Institute, or recording a Folk/Hip-Hop children’s album. He is the recipient of multiple honors awarded by the Washington Area Music Association including 2013 Artist of the Year, and the Montgomery County Executive Award for Excellence in the Arts, and has even been honored as a 2012 “Library Superhero” by Friends of the Library, Montgomery County.
DJ Face
DJ Face is a member of the True School Corporation, an organization of DJ’s founded and run by Grammy Award winning producer and DJ, 9th Wonder. Currently, Face is the tour DJ for Grammy nominated Jamla/Roc Nation artist, Rapsody, as well as Grammy nominated R&B/Soul singer Raheem DeVaughn. Face has performed in major venues nationally and internationally in places such as New York, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Germany, Aruba and more. Some of DJ Face’s current list of clients include: Nordstrom, Saks, and Macy’s.
DJ Face can be heard over the DC/MD/VA airwaves spinning on Majic 102.3/92.7FM on the midday mix with Vic Jagger, as well as every Saturday night from 7-10 p.m. with host, Ric Chill.
Eastern Senior High School Blue and White Marching Machine
Known for its competitive spirit, superior sound, and visually appealing performances, The Blue and White Marching Machine is one of the most celebrated marching bands in the Greater Washington Metropolitan Area; consistently ranked among the best in the Mid-Atlantic United States. For almost four decades the Marching Machine has consistently thrilled hundreds of thousands of spectators in person and millions on television. The Marching Machine is master of a diverse and varied repertoire ranging from traditional patriotic standards to Billboard’s Hot 100.
MetroStage
MetroStage presents a season of contemporary plays and musicals, chosen for their social, political, literary, and entertainment value. The collaborative work of professional Equity actors, directors, and designers results in productions representing the highest artistic standards. MetroStage presents original, challenging, innovative work and is recognized for its role in the development of new plays and musicals for the American stage. The theatre is committed to maintaining a diverse, equitable, anti-racist, fully inclusive environment on stage and off, with its work reflecting and embracing the diversity of the Washington DC/Northern Virginia population. The intimacy of the theatre and its multicultural productions offer both the audience and the artists a unique, powerful theatre experience. Currently MetroStage is building a new theatre and during this interim phase it is serving its patrons by presenting readings and a monthly cabaret series covering a broad range of musical genres.
Levine Music
Levine Music is a welcoming community with diverse and comprehensive offerings in music instruction tailored to create the richest and most fulfilling experiences for our students and families, as well as events and performances to inspire music lovers of all ages. Levine’s core values – excellence and opportunity – infuse everything we do. The preeminent center for music education in the Greater Washington region, Levine is committed to offering instruction of the highest quality and performance opportunities to anyone regardless of age, ability, or financial means. Founded in 1976 in memory of prominent Washington attorney and amateur adult music student Selma M. Levine, today, Levine provides music instruction to more than 3,500 students weekly at six physical campuses throughout Greater Washington, as well as a permanent virtual campus. Levine’s distinguished faculty offer a broad and well-rounded curriculum that provides a strong musical foundation for students of different ages, abilities, and interests. Hundreds of students receive substantial scholarship assistance; many hundreds more receive free instruction through community partnership programs.
SOLE Defined
SOLE Defined is the Washington Metro area’s leading arts organization specializing in percussive dance – using the body as an instrument to create musical expression, specifically, Tap Dance, Body Percussion, and Sand Dance. Ryan K. Johnson, Executive Artistic Director, and Quynn Johnson, Director of Arts Education (no relation), merge their expertise in education, performance, social justice, and community outreach to advance respect for African Diasporic percussive dance practices and to raise admiration for the genre as a vital part of concert dance and academia. These award-winning colleagues use a synthesis of sonic and kinesthetic movement methodologies, embodied storytelling, integrated media, and historical data to serve actively disinvested communities while combating systemic racism and advancing equality in the dance continuum. SOLE Defined performances center on social-political issues advancing the devolvement of bridges toward Belonging and cultivating a more equitable landscape for generations of BIPOC practitioners. SOLE Defined’s programs include local, regional, national, and international engagements and services. SD continues establishing its visibility by cultivating programming for the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Queens Theatre, Lincoln Center, and The International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD).