As we emerge from the pandemic, global and national leaders are recognizing the necessity of the arts and humanities to overcome the profound challenges of our time.
To cope with the tragedy of the pandemic, we looked into ourselves. We discovered new recipes and hobbies. We planted, restored, painted, reflected, emoted, and empathized. We creatively reimagined homes, schools, workspaces, and priorities as if fierce expression would save us. American ingenuity helped to stave off a drumbeat of doom.
Then one night in Manhattan, the great baritone Brian Stokes Mitchell — newly recovered from COVID himself — took to his balcony booming his Tony-winning ‘The Impossible Dream.’ His act of triumph over circumstance not only spawned a restorative nightly tradition for New Yorkers, it proclaimed the arts were there for all of us.
For the last few years, a chorus of international leaders has been advocating anew for arts and culture, touting the sector not only as an asset for healing pandemic suffering, but for addressing divides like those eroding unity in America.
