Time to Celebrate!

Pre-Enactment Theater from Harrison Center for the Arts on Vimeo.

We did it! With your help, the Harrison Center raised over $50,000 in just two months for Pre-Enactment Theater, a project that aims to reimagine the Monon 16 neighborhood as it ought to be–equitable, vibrant and just. And, thanks to all who contributed, we will receive an additional $50,000 matching grant from the Indianapolis Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA).

In the coming months, we will be working with local actors and set designers from large and small theater companies, and collaborating with visual artists, community stakeholders and three schools to perform visioning exercises.  Our stage will be the entire three block commercial stretch of Monon 16.  Set designers and property owners will make both temporary and permanent improvements to the physical structures to depict a healthy neighborhood.  This work will help neighbors plan for the future by re-envisioning the Monon 16 area “the way it ought to be”.   Instead of economic development at the cost of displacement, Pre-Enactment envisions a just, equitable and vibrant neighborhood where everyone is included in economic prosperity.  Rather than dwelling on  the past through "re-enactment",  we will "pre-enact" a new, vibrant commercial corridor that serves as hope for the future. The series of community visioning sessions and creative placemaking activities along 16th Street will culminate in a huge, day-long public event on October 7, 2017.

We are so grateful to everyone who made this fundraising effort a success–individual, local business and corporate donors, the staff at Patronicity, IHCDA and the CreatINg Places program. Stay tuned for updates and don't forget to mark your calendars for the big event on Saturday, October 7, 2017.