Commemorate Black History Month at the Atlanta History Center
Each February the Atlanta History Center presents a variety of enlightening activities commemorating Black History Month. An assortment of family and educational programming, museum theater experiences, and exhibitions allow visitors of a variety ages to discover and reflect upon the stories of important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. With an emphasis on Atlanta and the Southeastern region, the museum explores key themes including struggles and strides, humanity and individual strengths, and outcomes that have paved the way to our nation as we know it today.
The Atlanta History Center’s Black History Month events begin with Free Admission on MLK Day, January 21, 2013. Dedicated exhibitions and programming begin on February 1, 2013 and are ongoing throughout the month. A schedule of events follows:
FREE DAY
Atlanta History Center Free Admission in celebration of MLK Day and ACVB 100 Years of Hospitality
Monday, January 21, 2013
10:00 am – 5:30 pm
In honor of Martin Luther King Day, enjoy free admission to the Atlanta History Center featuring all-inclusive access to award-winning exhibitions in the Atlanta History Museum; tours of the 1928 Swan House and the 1860 Smith Family Farm; the Centennial Olympic Games Museum; and 22 acres of gardens and trails. For more information, visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.
NEW EXHIBITION:
Beginning February 1, 2013, the Atlanta History Center hosts the groundbreaking traveling exhibition Slavery at Jefferson’s Monticello: How the Word is Passed Down. The exhibition explores the lives of enslaved families on Jefferson’s well-known plantation as well as the powerful stories of their descendants brought to light through documentary study, oral history, and genealogy.
The exhibition was organized by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello in partnership with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and features objects from Monticello’s collection as well as artifacts from archaeological excavations at Jefferson’s Virginia plantation -- the best-documented, best-preserved and best-studied in North America. The exhibition provides a rare and detailed look at the lives of six enslaved families living at Monticello. Visitors will come to know them through their personal belongings, Jefferson’s records and belongings, and via Getting Word, Monticello’s oral history project. Exhibition visitors will see enslaved people as individuals―their first and last names, family connections, values, and achievements. Visitors will also see examples of deep marital and family connections, religious faith, striving for literacy and education, and tenacity in striving to make the words of the Declaration of Independence a reality. The exhibit is on display through July 7, 2013. This exhibition is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information about this exhibit or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.
FAMILY AND ADULT PROGRAMMING:
Struggles and Strides: The Early Fight for Civil Rights
Saturday, February 23, 2013
11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Struggles and Strides is designed to both educate and entertain guests of all ages and interests as they examine pivotal points in our nation’s history. In honor of Black History Month, this program focuses on the African American Experience from the Great Migration to the Civil Rights Movement.
Throughout the program guests may see engaging performances, enjoy interactive activities, hear a firsthand account from members of the Atlanta Student Movement, and learn how American culture was influenced.
Admission is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information about this program or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.
Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.
History Matters: Four Days of Fury: Atlanta 1906
Fridays, February 15 and 22: 6:30 pm, 8:00 pm
Saturdays, February 16 and 23: 5:00 pm, 6:30 pm, 8:00 pm
Sundays, February 17 and 24: 2:00 pm, 3:30 pm, 5:00 pm
The Atlanta History Center presents a unique and immersive experience designed to take visitors back in time. Four Days of Fury: Atlanta 1906, by resident playwright Addae Moon, involves audiences in the ideas, debates, emotions, and perspectives that led to the 1906 Atlanta Race Riot – a pivotal, yet unfamiliar event in Atlanta’s history. Participants dive into the past as trailblazing African American journalist J. Max Barber guides visitors through a provocative gallery-based theater experience that explores the headlines, people, and events of one of the city’s seminal episodes of race and memory. Facilitated discussions following the performances help visitors understand why history matters and how it has shaped our community today.
This hour-long theatre experience is recommended for ages sixteen and up, based on language and sensitive subject matter. Visitors who take advantage of the experience should understand this is an immersive encounter with history that is challenging and provocative, yet stimulating, inspiring, and motivating as well.
There is limited capacity per performance and reservations are required. Admission is $10 for Atlanta History Center members, $15 nonmembers. Reserve your tickets by phone at 404.814.4150 or online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/HistoryMatters.
This History Matters production is the first in a series of gallery-based offerings using museum theatre to explore the diversity of Atlanta’s past, present, and future, which seeks to literally place visitors inside history to learn why it matters to our community today.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING:
Fridays in February
Students experience African American history, culture, and achievements through exhibitions, live performances, living history interpreters, and hands-on activities. Four days of programming include A Day in the Life of a Slave; From Slave to Soldier: The African American Experience during the Civil War; Early Fight for civil Rights: The African American Experience Leading to Civil Rights Movement; and The Civil Rights Movement.
Admission is $8 per student; one adult admitted free for every10 students; Title I schools receive a discounted rate of $6 per student. Reservations are required. For more information, call 404.814.4110 or visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/SchoolTours.
Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of the Fulton County Arts Council.
Fight for Your Rights: The History of African American Progress
Through this new immersive school program, students participate in historical simulations that employ museum theatre, real-time decision making, and role play around pivotal events as they experience what it takes to stand together in the quest for racial equality form post-Civil War through civil rights.
Admission is $8 per student; one adult admitted free for every10 students; Title I schools receive a discounted rate of $6 per student. For more information, visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/SchoolTours.
Major funding for these school tours is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the auspices of the Fulton County Arts Council.
Tags:
