Chatham Arts Council

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November 25, 2025

From Mumbai to Senegal: A Journey in Dance, Drums, and Heart

Colorful folk dance sticks in a pile on shiny multipurpose room floor at a school.

What do you get when your week starts in India and ends in Africa? At Bonlee and Bennett Schools, the answer was rhythm, laughter, a few sore muscles, a whole lot of learning–(and perhaps a bit of jetlag!).

From October 13–17, students traveled across continents over 6,000 miles—without ever leaving their school floors—through a two-part artist residency that began with Priya Chellani of Indigo Dance and wrapped up with Diali Cissokho, a master drummer and storyteller from Senegal.

By Amanda Moran | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts for Resilient Kids, Arts in Education, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: AIS, Bennett, bonlee school, Chatham County Schools, Diali Cissokho, Priya Chellani

November 25, 2025

¡Olé, Chatham! A Flamenco Celebration at Perry Harrison and Silk Hope

Flamenco dancer performs in red dress, with red shawl, as students watch.

If you wandered into Perry Harrison or Silk Hope schools between October 20 and 22, you might have heard it first—a rhythmic tap, a guitar string hum, a voice lifting in song, and then… the magic of Flamenco. Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana brought a swirl of sound, color, and culture to fifth- and seventh-grade students as part of the Chatham Arts Council’s Artists-in-Schools program.

By Amanda Moran | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts for Resilient Kids, Arts in Education, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: AIS, artists-in-schools, Arts education, flamenco, flamenco vivo, perry harrison, school performance, Silk Hope

September 17, 2025

Check Out the 2025-26 Artists-in-Schools Season Lineup!

Do you remember the first time something a teacher said to you “clicked?” That moment when you finally understood the difference between a metaphor and a simile? That’s what the… Read More →

By April Starling | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, ChathamArts News, County Happenings, Events, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, AIS, artists, artists-in-schools, arts, Arts education, Arts in Education, Chatham County, Children, Collaboration, Community, Creative Culture, Creative Process, Creativity, dance, live music, Music, Musical Theater, Musical Theatre, performance, Poetry, Visual Arts & Crafts, Workshop, Writing

January 29, 2025

Go See This: SUNNYLAND: A New Banjo Rock Opera 

James Vose is a local business owner, US Army Veteran, and father. He currently serves as a Pittsboro Town Commissioner and is committed to generating a vibrant cultural community through… Read More →

By Heather O'Shaughnessy | Filed Under: County Happenings, Creative Placemaking, Events, Go See This | Tagged With: banjo, Breadfoot, elisabeth lewis corley, joseph megel, Stephan Meyers, streetsigns, the process series, theater

June 23, 2022

Diali Cissokho Brings More Than Drumming to Chatham Grove and Chatham Charter

It’s not hard to understand why Diali (pronounced Jelly) Cissokho is one of the most memorable teaching artists we have here in Chatham. With his brilliantly colored dashiki, booming voice,… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

June 22, 2022

John Brown Band Jazzes Up Learning at Bonlee and Willow Oak

Most kids think of jazz as “old-people music,” if they think of it at all. Thanks to Artists-in-Schools, the students at Willow Oak and Bonlee School learned there’s a lot… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

June 10, 2022

Math and Science Meet Dance in Siler City and Silk Hope

You expect a company called Black Box Dance Theatre to know a lot about dance. But they know a lot of other stuff, too! Perfect example–when they arrived at Silk… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

June 10, 2022

Bennett Students Explore the Art and History of Masks

Masks created by students at Bennett School

The ongoing pandemic has had masks at the top of nearly everyone’s mind, including teaching artist Serena Ebhardt of EbzB Productions. “During the height of masking for the pandemic, I… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

June 9, 2022

Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana Dances into Chatham County Schools

Members of Flamenco Vivo teach kids at Virginia Cross

Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana is no stranger to our Artists-in-Schools program. This season, we were thrilled to bring them into three Chatham County schools to teach the art and history… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

March 3, 2022

North Chatham Elementary and Moncure School Meet Jackie Robinson

It’s Monday morning, and there’s a lot of energy in the room. Artists-in-Schools artist Mike Wiley is about to perform his play Jackie Robinson: A Game Apart for the second… Read More →

By Andrea Akin | Filed Under: Artists-in-Schools, Arts in Education, County Happenings, Slideshow Featured | Tagged With: #ArtsEd, artists, Arts education, Chatham County, Children, Cultural Events, Music

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