Project mission
We believe in the power of telling stories. We believe in the necessity of people being able to tell their own. And we need to Listen Up. The mission of this project is to celebrate & center the voices of Black teens in Vermont.
This project is an archival event. We will hear directly from the young people who live here about their experiences and unique perspectives.
In order to avoid reducing the varied lived experiences of Black communities to a singularity, we strived to gather a collection of stories that represents the diversity of Black Vermonters.
the project will spotlight several different storytellers.
CONNECT WITH US
Connect
Have an idea or feedback about the project? Looking for more information? Contact Shani at shani.stoddard@gmail.com
Respond
Would you like to craft a response to be posted on our blog or social media? Contact Lowry at
Participate
If you want to participate and share your story with us, please reach out to explore the possibility! Contact shani.stoddard@gmail.com
Throughout March, visit Listen Up social
for Black Voices of Vermont storytelling!
Project ORGANIZERS
SHANI STODDARD
Project Director
Shani Stoddard is a dancer, choreographer, and performer from Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. He was an original cast member in Bess O'Brien's touring stage production of 'The Voices Project' in 2005.
Shani went on to study Dance and Musical Theater at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City, as well as Northern Vermont University in Johnson, Vermont. He has performed with the Vermont Dance Collective and continues to teach a variety of dance workshops in the Central Vermont area.
Shani is also a Burlington based drag performer; performing with Queen City Cabaret, Capital City Queens, Green Mountain Cabaret, and additional showcases in Montpelier, VT and Boston, Massachusetts.
SARAH LOWRY
Outreach Coordinator
Lowry is a white, Jewish, queer-identified, cisgender woman, who moved to Vermont 7 years ago. Lowry is a trained mental health counselor who works at Centerpoint in South Burlington, specializing in trauma-centered Drama Therapy and Somatic Therapy. She has spent the last two years on the Listen Up staff, providing clinical consultation for the project, group facilitation, and will be the Assistant Director of the live performance this upcoming summer. Lowry comes to this work with experience as a long time theater artist, a dancer, a community organizer, and a body-based trauma therapist.
As a theater-maker, a clinician, and community member, Lowry is committed to creating spaces for stories to be told by those who are systemically silenced, and for those stories to be centered and heard. Lowry is also committed to challenging herself and others who hold more power within these systems to unpack how we are working to dismantle the oppressive structures and cultural norms that create this silencing.