The Tortoise and the Hare: Slow and Steady, Entertaining and Educational

New York City Public School Children Attend
CISNY's Presentation of The Tortoise and the Hare

May 22, 2004

An audience of over 200 children, parents and community members gathered at Saint Peter's Lutheran Church today for the premiere of The Tortoise and the Hare, a concert performed by musicians from the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and actors from the In Parenthesis Theater Company.

Children who attended the Tortoise event received free reading books featuring the drawings of illustrator Don Freeman.

Young audience members get to know each other in between songs.

Through generous donations by Margaretta Taylor and Family and Emigrant Savings Bank, Communities in Schools, New York (CISNY) provided free Tortoise tickets to local public school children and their families. Emigrant Bank helped to sponsor the event as part of its community and educational outreach initiative, "Building the Future, One Life at a Time."

Dorian Rence and Richard Sortomme applaud the performance of Tortoise by actors from the In Parenthesis Theater Company.

Richard Sortomme, a New York-based composer and musician, created an original score for the Tortoise concert. Sortomme is also the composer of Androcles and the Lion, which was performed at Saint Peter's Church in April 2003. Androcles will be performed by the New York Philharmonic on Saturday, December 11 at Avery Fisher Hall.

As the musicians played, actors from the In Parenthesis Theater Company pantomimed scenes behind a projection screen displaying images by renowned set designer Anna Kiraly, who also created the actors' costumes.

Narrator Dorian Rence, a New York Philharmonic violinist and founder of the Artemis Project, rewrote one of Aesop's most famous fables to accompany Sortomme's music. Proceeds from tickets that were sold to the general public will benefit the Artemis Project, a non-profit organization promoting humane education and care for animals in New York City. Of the concert, Rence said, "It's always a wonderful thing to introduce kids to a good story told with music and images. And it's good to be able to provide a little humane education."

Enjoying a free copy of Don Freeman's masterwork, Dandelion.

In addition to the concert itself, children and families were treated to an exhibition of original etchings by Don Freeman, the celebrated childrens' book illustrator. Freeman, who died in 1978, is perhaps most famous for his books Dandelion and Corduroy. CISNY gave out 200 free books to children attending the event. Younger children received a copy of Dandelion; older ones received A Year Down Yonder. The latter, a 2001 Newbery Award Winner written by Richard Peck, was originally slated to be illustrated by Freeman, but the illustrator died before the project could be realized. Click here to read more about Don Freeman.

In addition to books, children received sweet treats from the kitchen of the Fraternité Notre Dame, a Harlem-based organization whose proceeds benefit single parents and the homeless. Informational materials on humane animal treatment were also given out following a lesson by Rence on how to safely interact with dogs and cats.

Musicians told the story

	Dorian Rence, a Philharmonic violinist and co-founder of the Artemis Project, wrote the script for Tortoise and narrated the story while the musicians played. Rence has written and narrated for two other children's concerts:  Carnival of the Animals (2002) and Androcles and the Lion (2003).
Musicians from the New York Philharmonic Orchestra take a bow following their performance of The Tortoise and the Hare.Â

…with a little dramatic assistance.

During the Tortoise concert, five actors from the In Parenthesis Theater Company performed the adventures of a tortoise, hare and friends behind a silhouetted backdrop.

In Parenthesis is a New York-based not-for-profit theater company that has been putting on performances since 1995. Marion Schoevaert is the company director.

Tortoise invitation postcard designed by In Parenthesis artist Anna Kiraly.

In 2003, actors from In Parenthesis performed during the musical presentation of Androcles and the Lion, also at Saint Peter's Church.Â

Anna Kiraly, the In Parenthesis set and costume designer, created the puppets, animation, backdrops and costumes used in the Tortoise concert. Kiraly, a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Budapest, has also designed for the Hungarian National Opera and The Knitting Factory. Her theatrical designs have been seen in New York as well as Timisuara, Romania and Subotica, Serbia. Kiraly also designed the unique image used to produce the Tortoise postcard invitations.

The Artemis Project

Dorian Rence displays one of several diagrams depicting the way dogs and cats communicate. Here, she holds a picture of "what a dog looks like when he's friendly and wants to be petted."  Animals, says Rence, use body language to "speak" in ways similar to humans. "If we want to get along with them, we need to understand the way they speak," she adds.

The Artemis Project is an animal welfare organization founded by Dorian Rence. Its goal is to alleviate the suffering of the city's animals in crisis. It strives to control and reduce the number of strays by using an approach known as TNR. Animals are trapped, spayed or neutered, and then re-released or placed in loving homes.Â

The Artemis Project also helps people with very limited means pay for medical care for their sick or injured pets. A third goal is to encourage humane care and treatment of animals by the youth of New York City. The Artemis Project works exclusively with Animal General at Lincoln Square to provide these services. For information contact Dorian Rence at (212) 877-9188.