A $50,000 grant awarded to the Arts in Medicine program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham will be used for cancer survivor programs and workshops.
UAB’s AIM received the grant from The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham Women’s Breast Health Fund. Portions of the grant will support “Raising Our Voices” workshops with Stuart Pimsler Dance Theatre at UAB in 2020.
SPDT will be in Birmingham from Jan. 29-31 to hold planning and information sessions. The company will be in residence at UAB for two weeks beginning Feb. 28 to work with participants and create the “Raising Our Voices” piece. It will be performed March 14 alongside the Stuart Pimsler Dance Theatre and UAB Department of Theatre performance at UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center.
“Living with cancer can be isolating,” said Suzanne Costello, SPDT artistic co-director. “The loss of normalcy, the effect on family and friends, the exhaustion, the change of identity — many people affected by cancer grapple with these daily realities. In this residency workshop, participants will give voice to their experiences, allowing opportunities for solidarity, healing and creative expression.”
Kimberly Kirklin, director of UAB Arts in Medicine, says UAB hopes to provide a space where people impacted by cancer can connect and share their experiences.
“The final presentation of the work ‘Raising Our Voices’ will be a celebration of their journeys,” Kirklin said.
Participating departments in the residency will include UAB Integrative Medicine Clinic at the Kirklin Clinic, affiliated UAB Medicine Breast Cancer Clinics, the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Theatre, UAB O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center. Support for this program is also provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.