EVENT RECAP- Removing the Mask: Art and Soul to Shatter the Silence of Sexual Violence
PAVE (Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment) hosted a fundraising event on the evening of September 17, 2009 in downtown Los Angeles’s gorgeous performing arts complex at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (www.musiccenter.org). The evening’s festivities included a silent auction, guest speaker Dave Pelzer, and performances by Catch Me Bird dancers and an assembled group of local LA talent who performed a dance about Removing the Mask alongside spoken word poet Steve Connell. Angela Rose, founder of PAVE, was in attendance and gave opening and closing remarks while Wanda Colon served as the mistress of ceremonies throughout the night. I attended as one of the press outlets, but Think MTV was also filming to include excerpts from the night in their stop the violence campaign. enHAUS Studios LA was also present to help promote and support the event. It was a night that brought women from all walks of life together as well as men. I was so moved by the end of the night, that I made a donation to PAVE and fully endorse Angela Rose’s charity as a worthwhile cause.
There were several celebrities in attendance including Tanya Brown, the younger sister of murdered Nicole Brown Simpson with whom I was able to speak with one-on-one in the following interview.
While Dave Pelzer and his story is widely known, it was the first time that I recall hearing about his incredibly abusive first 12 years of life. By the end of the night, the statistic of 1 in every 4 girls and 1 in every 6 boys will be sexually assaulted by the age of 18 could not escape your thoughts. This conversation has been taboo for decades and even more taboo when it comes to men who have been sexually assaulted or abused in any manner, so I was pleased to see Dave Pelzer as a scheduled guest speaker for the night. In 1995, Dave Pelzer released a memoir “A Child Called It” recounting his first 12 years of life before educators stepped in and helped to have him placed into foster care. The memoir has been #1 on the NY Times best seller list, #1 as an international best seller, and even nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Since the release of his memoir, Pelzer has written 6 more books to date. Read more about Dave Pelzer by visiting his website www.davepelzer.com. His message on this night was mainly directed at young people, the target audience for his current book “Real Life Advice for Real Life Challenges,” about not letting your circumstances define you. Instead, control your destiny. Take an active part in life. It was uplifting and was truly applicable to anyone since we all face challenges in our lives.
Catch Me Bird dancers Nehara Kalev and Derrick Jones performed a dance that told the story of falling in love, marriage, and the highs and lows that people face in relationships. You can read more about Catch Me Bird by visiting their website www.catchmebird.com.
The main attraction and my favorite performance for the night was named after the night’s theme Removing the Mask. It was choreographed by Sally Rice whose daughter, Sarah Rice, was on MTV Real World Brooklyn during which she disclosed that she had been molested by her father when she as a child. Since that time, Sarah and her mother Sally Rice have both become supporters of PAVE. Sally assembled dancers Malaya, Jasmine Reycole, Ali Patrick, Marcos Perez, Amanda Simolari, and Tim Wilson. She based her performance on 6 emotions that typified the healing process of a young girl or woman who has been abused: Innocence, Fear, Shame, Rage, Awakening, and Empowerment. The male dancers played a part in the more angry phases such as rage. As you’ll see in the interview I conducted with Steve Connell, his addition to the performance was on very short notice as was assembling the dancers, but honestly, as an observer, you could never tell. Steve Connell was given the 6 emotions and asked to write a spoken word piece through the eyes of a female. Anyone who was there that night can testify that his piece and delivery was absolutely stunning. There was not a dry eye in the house by the end of this performance because his words accompanied by the dancers with their masks truly captured the message. I have to credit Steve for being able to write a piece and deliver it AND it be so believable as if he were sitting in a woman’s body for the duration of the Removing the Mask performance. It was definitely the right act to round out a spectacular evening.
Here what Steve Connell had to say at the end of the night’s festivities when I caught up with him for a short interview.
Steve Connell has made a name for himself in his own right as an actor, writer, and poet. He has won the National Poetry Slam and National World Series of Poetry Slam titles in 2003, appeared on HBO Def Poetry Jam, appeared in several films and documentaries. This man is super talented! You can read more about him as well as purchase his CD (I know I will) on his website www.stevenconnell.com.
Not to be forgotten is the founder of PAVE, Angela Rose. Angela opened up for the evening by sharing her own story which led her to founding of PAVE 2001. At the age of 17, Angela was kidnapped for 5 hours where she was also sexually assaulted outside of a surburban Chicago Mall. She goes on to tell about the hardships she endured even in reporting the incident to police who did not initially believe her. I found a clip online that is not from this event, but where she tells her story.
In a city full of excessive glitz and glamour, this was one of the most true and memorable experiences I’ve had.
Related Links
Examiner.com (my own column)- PAVE event Removing the Mask seeks to raise awareness on sexual violence
PAVE official website– www.pavingtheway.net
Angela Rose blog– angelarosepave.wordpress.com
Steve Connell website– www.stevenconnell.com
Tanya Brown– www.tanyabrown.net
Dave Pelzer– www.davepelzer.com
Catch Me Bird dance– www.catchmebird.com
Think MTV– think.mtv.com
enHAUS Studios LA– www.enhausstudios.com
