Panel Discussion:
Using Our Voices for a Collective Liberation

Premieres Thursday, June 17 at 4:30pm ET

Members of the Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir join Artistic Director Michele Fowlin for a panel discussion on issues of social justice. Moderated by Washington Performing Arts Manager of Choir Curriculum and Performance Raynetta Wiggins-Jackson, this panel discussion expands the conversation around the student-driven Freedom in the Midst of Bondage performance (premiering June 19, 2021) and provides a forum for the singers to express how they are using their voices to share the stories of the world around them.

Panelists

Madison Fields
7th-grade Singer

Nia Frazier
10th-grade Singer

Walter Pierce Pearson IV
9th-grade Singer

Ambria Reese
9th-grade Singer

Kalyani Srivastava
7th-grade Singer

Connie Watts
11th-grade Singer

Michele Fowlin
Artistic Director,
Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir

Moderator:
Raynetta Wiggins-Jackson
Washington Performing Arts Manager of Choir Curriculum & Performance

About Children of the Gospel Choir

Formed in 1993, Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir (COTG) is one of Washington Performing Arts’s resident ensembles. COTG has become a destination choir for local students who look to develop excellence in artistry and technique as a performance ensemble. Chosen through a competitive audition process, choir members from D.C., Maryland, and Virginia commit to participating in a year of choral training, intensive workshops, and a variety of performances on Washington Performing Arts’s main stage and through community events. The COTG program provides opportunities for youth in grades four through 12 and promotes an environment of self-confidence, teamwork, and respect.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Michele Fowlin, the Children of the Gospel Choir have been featured at the White House (with Sara Bareilles at the Canadian State Dinner honoring Prime Minister Justin Trudeau); the Inaugural Prayer Services for President Barack Obama and the National Memorial Service for Nelson Mandela, both at The Washington National Cathedral; the Washington Performing Arts Gala with Broadway star Matthew Morrison; the historic Howard Theatre; the U.S. Department of State; and on NBC’s Today.

A very special thanks to the Arts and Social Justice taskforce of Washington Performing Arts Women’s Committee:
Vinetta Jones, chair; Patricia Bonds; Ruth Hodges; Albertina Lane; Dina Lassow; and Denise Rollins

Performances by the Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir are made possible by Jacqueline Badger Mars and Mars, Incorporated.

Gospel music programs and performances at Washington Performing Arts are made possible in part by the Beech Street Foundation and Mr. Jeffrey Bauman and Ms. Linda Fienberg; Hubert “Hank” Schlosberg and the Schlosberg Family; Tom Gallagher, in honor of Turnaround, Inc.; Trista L.P. Colbert and Theodore Colbert; Rudy Burwell and Mona Mohib, in loving memory of Rudolph Burwell, Sr.; Bruce Rosenblum and Lori Laitman; Pepco, An Exelon Company; the Dan Cameron Family Foundation; Mrs. Alison Francis; Mrs. Paula Seigle Goldman; and Mr. and Mrs. Glen Howard. List reflects donations of $1,000 or more as of June 11, 2021.