Photo Courtesy of Young Audiences of HoustonEvents
North Houston’s City Place partners with Young Audiences of Houston
City Place, a dynamic business and lifestyle hub in north Houston, is excited to announce a new partnership with Young Audiences of Houston, the region’s leading arts-in-education non-profit. Launching in July, this collaboration will introduce kid-friendly weekly activities on City Place’s central waterfront Plaza, further enhancing the area’s already robust calendar of mostly complimentary, family-oriented events. This partnership reflects the commitment by both organizations to making art and culture more accessible to communities beyond Houston’s urban core.
“We’re thrilled to team up with City Place to bring creative arts programming to this vibrant, inclusive space,” said Mary Curry Mettenbrink, CEO of Young Audiences of Houston. “Together, we aim to inspire curiosity, foster creativity and strengthen community connections. In a place like City Place, the possibilities for creative exploration are truly limitless.”
Founded in 1956, Young Audiences of Houston reaches over 250,000 children each year through arts-integrated residencies, performances and workshops that promote academic achievement, emotional development and community engagement.
In recent years, City Place has significantly enhanced its commitment to the arts. Collaborating with the esteemed Houston-based Weingarten Art Group, the community has introduced several highly anticipated temporary art installations featuring both local and international artists. Plans are also underway to add to a collection of permanent public pieces.
The initial lineup of programming for July (listed below) includes a thoughtfully curated schedule of workshops, performances, pop-up installations and community art-making events taking place on City Place’s central Plaza — all offered at no cost to guests.
DANCE AND MOVEMENT
Hosted by Open Dance Project on Wednesdays, July 2 and 30 from 9 – 11 a.m.
Participants will learn to combine elements in dance, music and theatre while expressing themselves through creative movement. Through dance fundamentals, students will focus on storytelling while building skills in self-awareness, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision making. This is a highly energetic dance program suitable for kids of all ages.
PAINTING WITH WATERCOLOR PENCILS
Hosted by Judy Malone Stein on Thursday, July 3 from 9 – 11 a.m.
This fun visual art workshop transforms The Plaza into a classical art studio with easels and other essential supplies. Participants are introduced to the medium of watercolor pencils and learn basic color theory which includes the color wheel and primary and secondary colors, along with complimentary colors. They will also focus on creating compositions, using traditional visions (portraits, landscapes and still life) as their subject matter. Students will learn and utilize two techniques (graphite transfer technique and grid technique) to first develop their compositions.
STAGE COMBAT (AKA DANCING) WITH SWORDS
Hosted by iACT Houston on Wednesday, July 9 from 9 – 11 a.m.
These classes are designed to train young students how to use the traditional positions of fencing in order to choreograph a performance. By taking this class, students come to understand partnering and how to choregraph their own stage combat combination/scene. Students will practice and perform with special safety foam swords.
THE ART OF CLAY
Hosted by Marsha Dorsey-Outlaw on Thursday, July 10 from 9 – 11 a.m.
In this beginner-friendly clay workshop, participants will learn the fundamentals of working with clay, including hand-building techniques line pinching, coiling and slab construction. This class is perfect for anyone new to clay or looking to refresh their skills.
MARTIAL ARTS
Hosted by Bwagilo Hairston on Wednesday, July 16 from 9 – 11 a.m.
Ase martial arts aims to help students learn self-discipline while becoming physically stronger and having fun. “Ase” is a Yoruba term that means power or energy. Ase Martial Arts is led by Baba Mosiah, who is a third-degree black belt in Inchin Ru and Kupigana Ngumi Kusini styles of matial arts. He specializes in teaching children and has over 20 years of experience in martial arts training.
FLOWERPOT CREATIONS
Hosted by Danny Russo on Thursday, July 17 from 9 – 11 a.m.
Participants will design, decorate and personalize their very own flowerpots using a variety of materials, including paints, stencils, markers and more. Once the pots are complete, participants will add mulch, water and seeds, creating a beautiful, one-of-a-kind planter to take home and watch grow.
SONIDOS SINCOPADOS!
Hosted by Jorge Orta on Wednesday, July 23 from 9 – 11 a.m.
Celebrate the musical stylings and traditions of Latin and Brazilian percussion with celebrated artist Jorge Orta. Students will learn the origins, history and rhythms inherent in samba, salsa and more through collaborative music-making and shared performance.
THE EXPRESSIONIST WITHIN
Hosted by Gerard Caliste on Thursday, July 24 from 9 – 11 a.m.
In this workshop, participants will create a unique mixed media, expressionistic work of art. Each piece will serve as a visual reflection of raw emotion, instinctive technique and creative exploration across a range of custom themes and objectives. Guided by prompts, participants will be encouraged to let natural creative instincts take the lead—painting, drawing, assembling and experimenting with materials. The result will be a meaningful and personal work of art that captures the energy and emotion of the creative moment.
DRAWING OUTDOORS
Hosted by Judy Malone Stein on Thursday, July 31 from 9 – 11 a.m.
“Plein air sketching,” or sketching outdoors, is an age-old exercise in capturing the world around us. Using wet and dry media, young artists will participate in learning to depict natural and man-made elements of our environment, creating a visual diary of day-to-day life.
For more information, please visit www.CityPlaceNow.com.
Source: City Place
