Monthly Archives: October 2017

IMG_2270.JPG

Levitt Foundation Executive Director Sharon Yazowski presenting at the 2017 Grantmakers in the Arts Conference.

Yesterday, Levitt Foundation Executive Director Sharon Yazowski was out in the field with Slover Linett Audience Research President Sarah Lee, presenting an interactive session at the 2017 Grantmakers Makers in the Arts Conference in Detroit. Together they demystified the process of impact assessment, sharing experiences from Levitt’s own journey into the creation of a multi-year impact study with Slover Linett and giving professionals in the grantmaking community the tools and knowledge they need to embark on their own assessment journeys.

Inspired by yesterday afternoon’s presentation, today we’re releasing the fourth installment of our “Research Recap” blog series, featuring posts that highlight a particular finding from our recently published impact study. With tomorrow being Halloween—an evening where costume-clad celebrators take over sidewalks (some of the most common public spaces out there)—we’re focusing on the value of spaces where people of all ages can move around freely.

Continue reading

Music_cities-levitt-loves

Pictured above: Levitt’s Sharon Yazowski and Vanessa Silberman with Matt Kowal and Lisa Gedgaudas of Denver Arts and Venues in front of the Stax Museum of American Soul in Memphis, Tenn.

Today, Executive Director Sharon Yazowski and Senior Director of Communications & Strategic Initiatives Vanessa Silberman are representing the Levitt Foundation at the 2017 Music Cities Convention in Memphis, Tenn. (one of our nation’s great ‘music cities’!). They’ll be joined by local Levitt Shell Executive Director Anne Pitts and Levitt Pavilion Denver Executive Director Chris Zacher—who’ll be presenting at the conference. Continue reading

LNT

Next summer, Southern raconteur Paul Thorn and his six-piece band will team up with five-time GRAMMY-winning Gospel legend, Blind Boys of Alabama, for a one-of-a-kind musical collaboration as headliners of the 2018 Levitt National Tour. Levitt audiences across the country will experience these exhilarating, soulful shows blending old-school gospel with rock, blues and country.

Taking place next June and July, the 2018 Levitt National Tour will stop in seven cities including Arlington, Texas; Bethlehem, Pa.; Dayton, Ohio; Denver; Los Angeles; Memphis; and Sioux Falls, S.D. (the future home of Levitt Shell Sioux Falls). The Tour follows on the heels of the 2017 Levitt National Tour, which featured Gulf Coast Soul sensation The Suffers, and previous Levitt National Tours featuring genre-busting violin outfit Black Violin (2015) and the world-music fusion of Playing For Change (2014).

Continue reading

  • "The Bridge" by Elena Colombo (2011); SteelStacks Arts and Cultural Campus, home to Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks (Bethlehem, PA)

Sounds, colors and people fill a Levitt lawn, infusing a palpable energy into an underused public space. More and more, public art—whether it’s a temporary installation, a permanent mural, or an interactive sculpture, to name a few—is becoming part of the Levitt experience across the country. Below are some of the exciting ways Levitt communities have embraced the multidimensional power of the arts in public spaces. Continue reading

Levitt_loves_memorable_momentsThink back to a formative memory. Do you envision a full event from start to finish, or a few meaningful moments? Chances are, there are particular moments that stick with you over time, as explained in the newly-released book The Power of Moments, by Stanford Business School professor Chip Heath and his brother, Dan Heath, senior fellow at Duke University’s CASE Center. Last month, a couple of us had the opportunity to hear Dan deliver a stirring keynote at the annual Communications Network Conference in Miami—where among other things, he discussed what makes a moment memorable. Continue reading

Spotlight_Series_whiskeyshivers

The Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series ends on a high note with critically acclaimed bluegrass darlings Whiskey Shivers, playing a FREE show tomorrow at 6PM! They’ve dazzled Levitt audiences in Denver (July 2017), Los Angeles (July 2014) and Arlington (September 2014) with their brisk energy and virtuosic folk spirit. Their theatrical, interactive performances have captured the attention of publications like NPR, The Washington Post and Rolling Stone. Middlesboro, mark your calendars because you don’t want to miss this one!

Continue reading