SUBMITTED NEWS RELEASE
Local Groups Collaborate with Artown to Spread Holiday Cheer
Artown, in collaboration with the City of Reno, Fascinating Rhythm School of Performing Arts and members from several local organizations, surprised attendees at the annual City of Reno Holiday Tree Lighting Nov. 24 at 5 p.m. with a holiday flash mob dancing to a mash-up of seasonal music.
Reno’s Holiday Tree Lighting spontaneous yet planned dance was inspired by the flash mob performances that have taken place around the world since the first in Manhattan in May 2003. With origins in performance art, flash mobs have included stunts such as large groups dancing, people freezing in place, spontaneous pillow fights and even groups of 200 or more shopping for rugs.
Learn more about: Flash Mob on Wikipedia
View flash mob sample videos: T-Mobile Liverpool Street Station, London; Frozen Grand Central Station; Dancing Bondi Beach, Sydney.
Participants included: Billinghurst Middle School Choir; skaters from Eldorado Hotel Casino’s “Holiday Ice Spectacular”; students from Fascinating Rhythm School of Performing Arts and University of Nevada, Reno; students from local high schools including Galena, Reed, Spanish Springs, Reno and Manogue High Schools; and, Controlled Burn. Choreography and instruction provided by Kia Crader, Diane Strand and Melissa Zinser of Fascinating Rhythm School of Performing Arts.
DOWNLOAD: Download images of Reno’s Holiday Tree Lighting flash mob: http://bit.ly/ArtownFlashMob
Organizers felt that the holidays were a perfect time to inject a little extra joy into peoples’ lives while also sharing an artistic performance.
For more information on Artown, visit www.RenoIsArtown.com or call the office at 775-322-1538.
Consisting of more than 400 events each July, Artown was noted by the National Endowment for the Arts as one of the most comprehensive art festivals in the country. With more than 100 partners, the month-long festival takes place at venues citywide. Artown receives major funding from the City of Reno, is sponsored by Harrah’s Reno, International Game Technology, KOLO 8 News Now, KTHX-FM, NV Energy, Reno Gazette-Journal, Reno-Tahoe and U.S. Bank with additional support from the Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.
