Roxbury Park Delighted With Philanthropic Performance

Beverly Hills CA

13 August, 2021

3:19 PM

Description

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — Sitting on colorful blankets and brown wooden chairs in the middle of a bustling Roxbury Park evening, Beverly Hills locals sang and danced to classic tunes on an artistically painted blue piano. The music played on for over an hour, attracting a crowd of passersby walking with their dogs and their families, enjoying the unexpected music and moment of joy. The evening was part of the Sing for Hope Pianos program, which recently brought 16 local artist-designed pianos to Beverly Hills. Sing for Hope put on the event with the Kara Love Project, a philanthropic group that organizes within the community for various global causes; TZ Projects, an experimental arts and cultural production company; the Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts; and the city of Beverly Hills. "This is a project of love and a project of community," Kara Love Project founder Lily Dulan said. "People come out and we come together. That's just what we do." The piano at this location was designed by Los Angeles-based artist Adam Rogers — who also spoke at the event — and is titled "Notes on Afrofuturism." Five other musicians took the stage, all of whom have been involved with the Kara Love Project for years: singer Sheri Field, musician Spring Groove, pianist Claire Gordon Harper, pianist James Lent and musician Joey Lugassy. Adam Rogers explains his artwork, titled "Afrofuturism," to the crowd. (Emily Rahhal/Patch) "There's an organic feel to being here. That piano gravitated to this environment, and it's just the right one," Beverly Hills resident Diane Holland said. "It's a pleasure to be here. It feels stress-feel, and it just feels like it's on the right wavelength." After Sept. 6, when all the pianos will be moved to new location, the Roxbury Park piano will be donated to the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, a nonprofit organization that provides dance training and professional access to disenfranchised young dancers, with a particular focus Black and Latino communities, according to their website. The piano will be housed in its Los Angeles new studio opening in January, the Rhimes Center for Performing Arts, named after donor and television icon Shonda Rhimes. Artist and TZ Projects founder Torie Zalben also spoke at the event and displayed her new artwork, titled, "Kara Love Heartbeat." Zalben was on the adjudicating board that judged all 16 Sing for Hope pianos and created a work of art inspired by the pianos that was displayed at the projects' launch at The Wallis. The artists and audience sang on after the program ended, going through classic hits such as "Imagine" and "Bohemian Rhapsody."