Mind-Builders Creative Arts Center, a hub for arts education and instruction in the Northeast Bronx, will host a day of celebration, open and free to all with performances, music, and family fun on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Open House Street Festival, now in its fifth year, will usher in the new 2022-2023 season at the center, and the event will include indoor and outdoor activities onsite at Mind-Builders, located at 3415 Olinville Avenue in Olinville.

 

Organizers of the festival said, “This year’s festival will feature special performances from the organization’s dance ensemble, music ensemble and karate students, and will be kicked off by a second line parade and DJ KayKay.” They added, “Interactive offerings include a talent contest where the audience will choose the winners, games for the whole family, and demo classes for martial arts, Zumba©, and yoga on the festival’s mainstage.”

 

Additionally, visitors can participate in a raffle after touring Mind-Builders’ recently renovated state-of-the-art facility and its extensive African Arts Collection as well as learn about registration and scholarships opportunities.

 

Since its inception in 1978, Mind-Builders officials said the center has developed a unique peer-supported learning culture that is a critical resource for local youth with few other options for cultural enrichment. Instruction is offered in music (drums, piano, keyboard, brass instruments, voice, etc.) and dance (ballet, hip hop, modern, African, tap, Zumba©).

 

Some of the institution’s programs include the Positive Youth Troupe (PYT) theater company; the Community Folk Culture program which enjoys an ongoing partnership with the Smithsonian; the Arts Passage XPress for teens and young adults; an arts-based Universal Pre-K program; an intergenerational orchestra and the African Art Docent project. Classes for the 2022- 2023 season begin on Oct. 5 with more than fifty classes offered weekly.

Mind-Builders 5th Annual Open House Street Festival Schedule

10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Building and African Art Tours

11 a.m. -1:30 p.m. – Sample Classes in Dance, Music, Martial arts

1 p.m. – 4 p.m. – Demo Classes & Student Performances

4 p.m. – 5 p.m. – Second Line & Talent Contest/Cash Prizes

10 a.m. – 6 p.m. – Street vendors [list still in formation] will be manning their booths and will include Bizkochitoz y mas; District 12 City Council Member Kevin Riley, Feminists for Men Inc.; Montefiore Medical Center; Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez (A.D. 80); New York Public Library; New York Communities for Health; Payano’s Corner Shop; Racial Justice Commission, and Verizon.

 

Special invited guests include State Sen. Jamaal T. Bailey (S.D. 36), District 11 City Council Member Eric Dinowitz, Assembly Member Nathalia Fernandez (A.D. 80), Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (A.D. 83), District 12 City Council Member Kevin Riley, and District 16 City Council Member Althea Stevens.

 

Established in 1978, Mind-Builders representatives said the organization is a pioneering nonprofit founded by educator and scholar, Madaha Kinsey-Lamb, to bring arts instruction and education to the Northeast Bronx, inspiring the growth of generations of local youth and families through high-quality arts programming.

 

Mind-Builders brings together best practices in arts education, youth development, and community engagement in the belief that a healthy community is a vital ingredient toward healthy development. Program alumni include Alimi Ballard, Gilbert Glenn Brown, Ayodele Casel, Charles Malik Whitfield, and Victoria Gabrielle Platt, among others.

 

For more information please visit: https://www.mind-builders.org/