‘Blacks In Wax’ brings black history to life at Grounds For Sculpture
Black history comes alive Saturday, February 23 as twenty-eight third through eight grade students present Foundation Academies’ Blacks In Wax Museum.
This hands-on production mirrors the Blacks In Wax Museum of Baltimore as students research African-American leaders of the past and present, produce them as wax figures then bring them to life with their own written monologues.
As audience members walk through the Grounds For Sculpture museum , characters appear to be “frozen in wax”. By tapping on a button near the actor, the monologue and performance begins. “It’s an interactive and unique experience for the audience”, Jazmin Evans, Foundation Academy science teacher, team leader, and director of Blacks In Wax. “Bringing our scholars to Grounds For Sculpture to perform is such an incredible opportunity for them to reach a greater audience. It’s the ideal stage for the Blacks In Wax Museum.”
And while African American standard bearers generally include Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Sojourner Truth, Mary McLeod, Harriett Tubman and a litany of other worthy champions, this year’s “Blacks In Wax” event offers a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) subplot.
“We wanted to focus on a more diverse group of influential African Americans. Students usually select Dr. Martin Luther King or Malcolm X. We wanted to focus on historically black colleges and universities and the Greek organizations,” Evans explained.
“This year focuses on characters who have made significant contributions to the areas of science, technology, engineering or math, such as mathematicians Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan and astronaut Mae Jemison.”
“Blacks In Wax” shows on Saturday 11:30 -1 p.m. at Grounds For Sculpture.
Foundation Academies is a top-performing public K-12 charter school in Trenton, NJ. Founded in 2007, Foundation Academies serves over 1000 students across two campuses.
For more information, and to highlight this and other press from Foundation Academies, please contact:
Graig Weiss, Chief Executive Officer of Foundation Academies
Email: Gweiss@foundationacademy.org
Phone: (609) 331-5895