{"id":4580,"date":"2022-03-31T14:58:03","date_gmt":"2022-03-31T14:58:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/?p=4580"},"modified":"2022-03-31T14:58:03","modified_gmt":"2022-03-31T14:58:03","slug":"toledo-opera-continues-the-blue-discussion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2022\/03\/31\/toledo-opera-continues-the-blue-discussion\/","title":{"rendered":"Toledo Opera Continues the Blue Discussion"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-4578 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust6.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" \/>By Dawn Scotland<br \/>\nThe Truth Reporter<\/p>\n<p>The Toledo Opera hosted \u201cBuilding Trust: A Documentary Film Screening and Panel Discussion\u201d at Lourdes University\u2019s Franciscan Center March 23.\u00a0 This was the second screening of the documentary \u2018Blue: Stories from Toledo\u2019 created for the opera <em>Blue <\/em>that debuts in August.<\/p>\n<p>The welcome was given by Lisa McDuffie, president\/CEO of the YWCA of Northwest Ohio and community chairperson for Toledo Racial Equity and Inclusion Council (TREIC).<\/p>\n<p>The 20-minute film highlights interactions with the Toledo Police Department and commentary from Toledo residents and retired law enforcement. \u2018Blue: Stories from Toledo\u2019 includes interviews with local artist James Dickerson (Facebook, IG: @dirtykics), Shirley Green, PhD, former lieutenant, retired Sergeant Anita Madison and Crystal Harris, the mother of Christopher Harris who was killed by Toledo police in 2021. \u00a0The aim of the documentary is to conceptualize the story of the opera <em>Blue<\/em> in a local context. The film was produced by Madhouse.<\/p>\n<p>Following the screening of the film a panel discussed the current climate between residence and law enforcement. Patrice McClellan, PhD, president and lead strategist of the Ronald Group, moderated the panel presentation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-4582 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Panelists for the event included:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Tonya Rider &#8211; Former Toledo Police Department (TPD) detective<\/li>\n<li>Sarah Shendy &#8211; director of the Office of Law Enforcement Recruitment in the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services and officer in the Copley Police Department<\/li>\n<li>David Ross &#8211; artist who co-created the George Floyd and Damia Ezell murals in Toledo<\/li>\n<li>Darriontae Stewart &#8211; State Trooper<\/li>\n<li>Marvin Whitfield &#8211; Founder of Blue Force Mobile Training Team and President &amp; CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Ohio<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Panelist discussed the origins of the policing in America, implicit bias, community policing and solutions to changing the culture of policing. \u201cIf they\u2019re from the community it doesn\u2019t really matter the race. [Police] should be from the community and understand the barriers in community\u2026 How can police work and communicate with people and they don\u2019t know their barriers? \u201casked David Ross, the artist who created the George Floyd mural in Toledo. \u201cIntegrity, compassion [are] all things that are needed to make a good cop. If you don\u2019t know the community \u2013 learn it. It\u2019s that simple.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The opera <em>Blue<\/em> debuts this August 26 &amp; 28 at the Valentine Theatre and features an all-black cast. The opera addresses the complex issues of living while black in America.<\/p>\n<p><em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-4583 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" \/>\u201cBlue <\/em>is the story of an African American couple in Harlem who anticipates the birth of their firstborn, a son, with both hope and fear. As the baby grows into a young man, the mother worries for his future, and the father tries to prepare his son for the realities of 21st century America, while wrestling with his own identity as a police officer, a \u2018Black man in blue.\u2019 When their deepest fears come true, the family is forced to navigate a devastating reality seeking answers and support from their church and community. Toledo Opera presents the Tony Award\u00ae\u2013winning composer Jeanine Tesori and NAACP Theatre Award\u2013winning librettist Tazewell Thompson\u2019s new opera inspired by contemporary events and Black literature. Influenced by gospel music and using vivid flashbacks,\u00a0<em>Blue<\/em>\u00a0places timely issues at the forefront of modern opera and invites audiences to the emotional epicenter of their impact. \u00a0Chelsea Tipton, II returns to Toledo to conduct\u00a0the opera and librettist Tazewell Thompson serves as the stage director.\u201d (source: ToledoOpera.org)<\/p>\n<p><em>Blue<\/em> is made possible by Owens Corning, The National Endowment for the Arts, and Ohio Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information about <em>Blue<\/em>, please visit <a href=\"http:\/\/www.toledoopera.org\/upcoming-performances\/season-event\/blue\/\">www.toledoopera.org\/upcoming-performances\/season-event\/blue\/<\/a>. For more information on Toledo Opera, visit <a href=\"https:\/\/toledoopera.org\">https:\/\/toledoopera.org<\/a>. Tickets can be purchased for <em>Blue<\/em> via phone 419-255-SING or online.<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-4580 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-full'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2022\/03\/31\/toledo-opera-continues-the-blue-discussion\/trust2\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2022\/03\/31\/toledo-opera-continues-the-blue-discussion\/trust5\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust5.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2022\/03\/31\/toledo-opera-continues-the-blue-discussion\/trust\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"253\" height=\"220\" src=\"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/trust.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Dawn Scotland The Truth Reporter The Toledo Opera hosted \u201cBuilding Trust: A Documentary Film Screening and Panel Discussion\u201d at Lourdes University\u2019s Franciscan Center March 23.\u00a0 This was the second screening of the documentary \u2018Blue: Stories from Toledo\u2019 created for the opera Blue that debuts in August. The welcome was given by Lisa McDuffie, president\/CEO [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,17],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[113],"class_list":["post-4580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-headline","category-local"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4580"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4580\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4586,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4580\/revisions\/4586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4580"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=4580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}