2020-2021 has been a trying time for artists and arts organizations; many have had to completely reimagine how they work and create. In this conversation, speakers will discuss the obstacles they’ve experienced and how they plan to move forward in the years to come.

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ART & Looking Ahead featured speakers:

Ira S. Murfin

Ira S. Murfin is a cultural programmer, theatre + performance artist, scholar, and writer based in Chicago. He holds the Interdisciplinary PhD in Theatre & Drama from Northwestern University, where his research investigated the relationship between media, cultural institutions, and disciplinary categories in late 20th Century artistic vanguards, and an MFA in Writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His creative practice focuses on extemporaneous talk as performance material. His work has been presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Chicago Cultural Center, Links Hall, Neo-Futurists Theater, and Rhinoceros Theatre Festival, among other places. His scholarship and criticism has appeared in both scholarly and general interest publications. He also regularly leads conversations, gives talks, and writes contextual material for audiences at Chicago performing arts institutions, including serving eight seasons as a PreAmble Lecturer with Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Currently, he focuses on facilitating public programming for and with communities across Chicago. Most recently, he held a Mellon/ACLS Public Fellowship as Program Manager for Neighborhood Partnerships with the Chicago Humanities Festival.

 

Jackie Taylor

Ms. Taylor serves as the Founder, Executive Director and CEO of the 46-year-old Black Ensemble Theater. Jackie Taylor has written, produced and directed more than 100 plays and musical biographies, including Don’t Make Me Over (The Story of Dionne Warwick), The Marvin Gaye Story, I Am Who I Am (The Story of Teddy Pendergrass), God Is A Black Man Named Ricky, Those Sensational Soulful 60’s, The Other Cinderella, Somebody Say Amen, At Last: A Tribute To Etta James, and The Jackie Wilson Story, among a myriad of other highly regarded productions. She is a theater graduate from Loyola University, has a Master’s in Education from the American College of Education and holds a Doctor of Humane Letters from DePaul University. Ms. Taylor is also an educator, having taught in the Chicago Public Schools for more than 35 years.

Ms. Taylor is a consummate actress, having starred in numerous theatrical productions with many major theaters. She won national attention in her first film, Cooley High. She has gone on to be featured in several other films including Barber Shop II, To Sir With Love: Part II, Hoodlum, and Losing Isiah. Her television credits include being featured in such television shows as Early Edition, The Father Clements Story, and several television specials where, as a celebrity, she played herself. Jackie has worked with Sidney Poitier, Vanessa Williams, Bill Duke, Ice Cube, Steven Williams, and Spike Lee, just to name a few.