KC Festival: The Presidency of John F. Kennedy: A 50th Anniversary Celebration
The Kennedy Center marks the 50th anniversary of a remarkable American presidency
Presidents, America, Dance, Music, Theater, Poetry

Cuesheet: NSO Discussion, Demonstration & Open Rehearsal: george WASHINGTON
Music meets history as state-of-the-art technology, beautiful imagery, surround-sound, spoken words, and orchestral music blend together in this new multimedia composition.
Music, America, Composers, Orchestra, Presidents

The Story Behind The Song: We Shall Overcome
In this story, find out how a song helped steel the courage of African Americans as they struggled for civil rights
America, History, Music, Presidents

Series: The Grapes of Wrath: Voice and Vision
This collection of suggested lessons and activities aim at helping students build a framework, from various perspectives of the 1930s, in which to embed a close study of Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath
America, History, Geography, Science, Nature, Presidents, Literature, Music, Movies & Movie Stars, Opera

Collection: Presidents
Learn about America’s most famous leaders and their appreciations and influences over the arts; from Lincoln’s connection to music, to Kennedy’s advocacy for the arts, to the importance placed in having White House photographers capture the president’s everyday achievements.
America, Presidents

Collection: Civil War
Through songs and letters, explore the stories and people who lived through the American Civil War, including the relationship President Abraham Lincoln had with the music of his time.
America, Controversial, Military, History, Presidents

Grades 9-12 Lesson: Drawing Political Cartoons
Analyzing political cartoons will allow students to develop both factual knowledge and interpretive skills
Cartoons, Comics, & Animation, Presidents, Controversial, History

Grade 5 Lesson: US Presidential Election Process and the Campaign Trail
Students will create an original political campaign song for a fictional presidential candidate.
Presidents, America, History

Grade 5 Lesson: Political Cartoons as Part of the Election Process
Students will organize the information they researched on the U.S. presidential election process and constitutional rights.
Presidents, America, Visual Arts, History, Cartoons, Comics, & Animation

Slideshow: Discovering American Scrapbook
Bringing poetry to life through performance
America, Poetry, Presidents, Playwrights & Plays, Theater

Audio Series: NSO Young People's Concert - Reach For The Moon
Just like President Kennedy had a vision for America, composers have visions of how they want their music to sound. For some, their musical mission is to explore a galaxy of stars and planets, moon shots, space walks, and galactic battles!
Composers, History, Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Technology, Space, Presidents

Audio Series: Art in Camelot: The Arts in the Kennedy Years
Through his words and examples, President Kennedy raised awareness of the importance of the arts in America
Presidents, Music, Military, History, Architecture, America, Visual Arts

Audio Series: Abraham Lincoln and Music
Abraham Lincoln was one of America's most unmusical presidents - he could neither play an instrument nor carry a tune
History, Music, Presidents, Theater, America, Opera, Musicals

Audio: Cultural Diplomacy
Even while the United States was entering the Cold War with the Soviet Union in 1961, the Kennedy administration strengthened their commitment to cultural diplomacy. This audio story highlights some of the important ways President Kennedy used the arts to help improve the image of the United States around the world.
Presidents, Music, Military, History, America, Europe

Arts Quotes: John F. Kennedy
"We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth."
America, Controversial, History, Presidents

Arts Quotes: Ulysess S. Grant
"I know only two tunes; one of them is "Yankee Doodle", and the other isn't."
America, History, Music, Presidents

Arts Days: October 07, 1955: Cello’s Child Prodigy
Soon after a music professor began to teach his four-year-old to play the cello, he quickly realized his son was no ordinary music student. Later that year, the family immigrated to New York City in order for the young boy to continue his musical studies. At five, he began performing in public; at seven, he played for President Kennedy. Yes indeed, by all comparisons, Yo-Yo Ma was a pee wee cello prodigy.

Ma eventually enrolled at the Juilliard School, then went on to graduate from Harvard University. Today, Ma’s expressiveness and technical brilliance defies categorization. Tackling all kinds of music from classical to folk, baroque to bluegrass, Ma is believed to be the world’s premiere cellist.
Music, Music Legends, Musical Instruments, Presidents, Young Artists

Arts Days: March 28, 1907: Nothing Slow About Swifty
When Hollywood legend Irving Lazar managed to sign three mega-deals in a single day, actor Humphrey Bogart jokingly gave him the nickname “Swifty.” It stuck, creating the role of a super talent agent, with such clients ranging from writers Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Nabokov, and Tennessee Williams, composers Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, and George Gershwin, and actors/singers Cary Grant, Gregory Peck, Cher, and Madonna.

Lazar was notorious for his legendarily high phone bills (he worked those phones!) and even more famous for the party he threw every year after the Academy Awards®; an invite to Swifty’s party meant that you had arrived.  Standing only 5’3”, Lazar was a giant when it came to protecting the creative and financial interests of his famous clients. Lazar also produced movies and plays, and even represented politicians like Richard Nixon, but his work as a performer’s advocate is still what he’s best known for.
Backstage, Movies & Movie Stars, Presidents

KC Connection: Words of Vision and Revision
Take a deeper dive into the words of great Americans and consider how history can inspire change through great art and creativity, including one's ability to be a "citizen artist."
America, History, Presidents

KC Connection: JFKC: A Centential Celebration of John F. Kennedy
President Kennedy believed that to be an active artist was to be a true American citizen—someone who uses their creativity to improve lives and change society for the better.
Presidents, America, History