Atlanta, GA – The Second Annual First Voices Festival returns November 17-24, 2023. Events are family-friendly and everyone is welcome! Produced by 7 Stages in collaboration with Turtle Island Trading, Zintkala Zi PowWow, Little 5 Points Business Association and Plaza Theatre.

To kick off a full weekend of complimentary events, 7 Stages hosts an evening of storytelling and music on November 17 with Muscogee (Creek) elder and fine flutemaker William Harjo. For over 25 years, Harjo has traveled the world telling stories, playing and selling his handmade flutes. He will also be at the PowWow in the following two days, performing and demonstrating his craft. The opening reception will feature sweet and savory frybread dishes and refreshments from Cherokee-owned Three Sisters Soulfood.

For two days, November 18-19, the soccer field in Little 5 Points will be filled with dancers, musicians, vendors, and visitors to the only PowWow in the city of Atlanta. Indigenous people of many backgrounds will gather in the field to represent their cultures. The PowWow features a dance competition, performances by drummers, flutists, singers, and a variety of goods crafted by Indigenous artisans.

To cap off the events of First Voices Festival, a special screening of Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World will be held at Plaza Theatre on November 24. This documentary shows the enormous influence Indigenous people have on Rock n’ Roll, using interviews and archival footage. Indigenous art and jewelry vendors will host a pre-show minimarket in the lobby of Plaza Theatre.

At 7 Stages, we honor the Muscogee (Creek) people and their ancestral land as our theatre has resided on this unceded land for over 44 years. While we produce content that spans nationally and internationally, it is essential for us to keep such inequities at the forefront of all that we do. We aim to honor these communities past, present and future through conversations, practices and programming that imagines and initiates what reparations can be in a variety of ways. As we examine our role in the arts community, we strive to shed light on colonialism and seek to create brave spaces for Indigenous voices, stories, and leadership. We include a land acknowledgement before all performances and tickets include a land use fee. The proceeds are donated to our Indigenous partners annually. Co-producing the First Voices Festival is part of our ongoing commitment to this work.

Vitals:

Storytelling with William Harjo

November 17, 2023 – Reception at 6:30 PM, Storytelling at 7:30 PM

Admission: Complimentary

Venue: 7 Stages

Venue Address: 1105 Euclid Ave NE Atlanta, GA 30307

Box Office #: 404-523-7647

Website: 7Stages.org

 

PowWow at First Voices Festival

November 18 and 19, 2023 – 10 AM to 5 PM

Admission: Complimentary

Venue: Little 5 Points

Venue Address: 1136 Austin Ave, NE Atlanta Georgia

Box Office #: 404-523-7647

Website: 7Stages.org

 

Screening of RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World

November 24, 2023 at 7:30 PM

Admission: $15

Venue: Plaza Theatre

Venue Address: 1049 Ponce De Leon Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30306

Box Office #: 470-410-1939

Website: plazaatlanta.com

In Fall of 2022, 7 Stages received funding from Fox Theatre Institute’s Preservation Grant and Georgia Council for the Arts’ Cultural Facilities Grant, as well as many individual donors. In addition, local hero Christopher Escobar donated gently used seats from a recent renovation at The Plaza Theatre. Renovations are underway in May and June of 2023, and will result in improved audience experience and accessibility for both performance spaces in our historic facility.

Mainstage work includes new seating, new carpet, and wider stairs with handrails greatly improving audience comfort and allowing more autonomy for patrons. The BackStage Theatre space received new seating risers that are more stable, have wider stairs, and include structural handrails. These improvements will not only make it safer for patrons, while improving access and comfort, but will also significantly reduce costs and increase artistic flexibility, making our BackStage Theatre a true black box.

In 1979, 7 Stages began producing in a small storefront around the corner from our current home. In the early 1980s, 7 Stages expanded significantly, taking over the pool hall next door and nearly doubling the interior space. Shortly thereafter, additional space was needed, and our current home became available. Local legends Don Bender and Kelly Jordan leased the current facility to founders Del Hamilton and Faye Allen. In 1996, a $1.4 Million capital campaign allowed 7 Stages to purchase the facility, build the permanent Mainstage seating, connect the BackStage space to the central interior via a new hallway, and add offices among other improvements that gave the building its current layout.

The facility was originally built in the 1940s as a movie theater, one of several Storey Theatres, and has gone through myriad improvements before and after the purchase in 1996. Improvements throughout the 2000’s included replacing the roof while adding much needed insulation increasing the R Value significantly; restoring the Marquee and changing the the power hungry 10’ long fluorescent tubes out for energy efficient LED; changing most facility lighting over to LED throughout the building; adding equipment and infrastructure to change the majority of stage lighting in the Mainstage over to LED; replacing all 4 HVAC systems to more efficient units while automating controls for further cost and energy savings; renovating public restrooms and creating non-binary gender options, plus upgrading to more energy-efficient appliances.

7 Stages intended to embark on a typical Capital Campaign to raise all the funding and undergo a great deal of the renovations all at once during an extended closure. The 2008 recession required a new plan, and the Asset Restoration Campaign was born. A constantly evolving facility needs list was created, prioritized, and grouped into sensible buckets. A phase was selected, funds were raised, and projects completed. Meanwhile the list was constantly updated, prioritized, grouped together, and funded. In this way, we are able to manage the facility, ensuring it remains a vital arts center for our community.

Many of these renovations were made possible by The Community Foundation’s Grants to Green initiative and previous contributions from The Fox Theatre Institute, The Woodruff Foundation Lettie Pate Evans, The Tull Foundation, AEC Trust, Woodward Fund, Cousins Foundation, Livingston Foundation, and many individual donors. Over $1,000,000 has been invested in the Asset Restoration Campaign resulting in more than $10,000 of annual savings in energy and water. Another phase of LED upgrades and additional building envelope work are the next major projects.

Now, thanks to the Fox Theater Institute Preservation Grant, Georgia Council for the Arts Cultural Facilities Grant, Plaza Theatre and Christopher Escobar, 7 Stages is afforded the opportunity to create a significantly more accessible and safer theatre experience for patrons and producers.

Fox Theater Institute Preservation Grant awarded 7 Stages $25,000 for 2023 renovations. The Fox Theatre Institute (FTI) is a dynamic outreach program offering historic preservation expertise, consultation, and education to performing arts venues in Georgia and the region. Created by Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, an iconic attraction widely applauded for being a catalyst for positive change in the community, FTI pays it forward, helping other cultural institutions renew, reinvigorate, and restore artistic vitality in their backyards and beyond. Keeping environmental and economic impact top of mind, FTI offers the financial assistance, restoration support and operations mentoring needed to leverage scarce resources and stimulate local economies. Not only that, but it keeps the artistic pulse of beloved communities beating for decades to come.

Georgia Council for the Arts Cultural Facilities Grant awarded 7 Stages $36,000 for 2022-2023 improvements. Georgia Council for the Arts (GCA) is a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development whose mission is to cultivate the growth of vibrant, thriving Georgia communities through the arts. GCA provides grant funding, programs, and services statewide that support the vital arts industry, preserve the state’s cultural heritage, increase tourism, and nurture strong communities. Funding for Georgia Council for the Arts is provided by appropriations from the Georgia General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Plaza Theatre donated over 170 seats to 7 Stages thanks to Christopher Escobar, the owner of the Plaza, who recently purchased the Tara Theatre and saved it from destruction. Opened in 1939, the Plaza Theatre is Atlanta’s oldest operating cinema, its only independent cinema, and now Atlanta’s only minority-owned cinema!

7 Stages is a professional, non-profit theatre company devoted to engaging artists and audiences by focusing on the social, political, and spiritual values of contemporary culture. 7 Stages gives primary emphasis to international work and the support and development of new plays, new playwrights, and new methods of collaboration.