To the Daytime Moon Creations community:
From its very beginnings, Daytime Moon Creations was about celebrating what makes us each special. It was about making theater in which everyone had the opportunity to be in the spotlight, to take a bow, to have their contributions applauded. From “Superfriends: With Our Powers Combined” through to the most recent curtain call in 2014, the young people who participated in our programming showed us time and again that each of us has a story to tell when we are given a welcoming space with the supports to help us express it.
It has been a great joy to lead this organization since its founding in 2008, to oversee a dedicated group of volunteer administrative staff and an incomparable Board of Directors, and to make theater in classrooms alongside some of the most joyful and creative teaching artists I know. I am so proud of the work our team did together, and of the impact that Daytime Moon’s programs made on young people with disabilities and their families in the New York City community. Sustaining small nonprofit organizations is not without its challenges, but I am similarly proud of the humility with which the Board elected four years ago to place programs on hiatus to fully focus on sustainability initiatives and partnership frameworks.
It is with immense pride and deep gratitude that I share what comes next, as Daytime Moon Creations moves into its new home and relaunches theater programming under the offerings of the Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special Needs. The Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special needs is a leader in the field of arts education for students with disabilities, and is committed to our shared values of inclusivity, the importance of expression, and the right of every child who wishes to participate in the performing arts to have that chance. From its early days as music programs for children with autism at Boston Conservatory, the Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special Needs programs have been filled with joy, conducted by passionate, dedicated staff, and supported by families who want to see their children celebrated. Late this summer, by a unanimous vote, the Board of Directors of Daytime Moon Creations decided to formally cease our programmatic operations and to direct all remaining assets towards the creation and endowment of the theater education programs at the Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special Needs.
It is impossible to speak of these programs or the staff who run them without commending the vision and leadership of Founding Managing Director Dr. Rhoda Bernard. Dr. Bernard has led the programs from their beginning at Boston Conservatory, and she created the Berklee Institute with plans to expand to offer programs for every age, disability, and art form in addition to professional development that shapes the next generation of arts educators for students with disabilities. The Board of Directors and I trust that in Dr. Bernard we have found not only a strategic leader who will guide Daytime Moon’s programs into this next phase of their existence, but also a true partner who understands the values that always guided us in our work.
Throughout my time as Daytime Moon Creation’s Executive Director, I was frequently asked where the name “Daytime Moon” came from, and I hope you will indulge me in one final recounting of this story: When I was a little girl, my father would point to the sky whenever the moon was visible during the morning or afternoon. He called it the Daytime Moon and he told me whenever we saw it, we had to smile because we were witnessing something special. The moon, he said, was supposed to be visible at night—but the sky was more unique and beautiful when lit by both the sun and the moon. It might look different on the blue sky instead of the black, but there was perfection in that difference. When the Daytime Moon leadership team first began to talk about the young people in our programs, it was this idea we came back to: a stage that has room enough for everyone’s stories is all the more beautiful for it.
When we witness the voices of children with disabilities included and celebrated for their own merit, we have to smile, for we are witnessing something tremendously special. In Berklee, Daytime Moon has found a new sky to play in, and our team could not be more thrilled to see all the light to come. To read more press coverage of Daytime Moon Creations' launch at Berklee, please click here.
With warmest appreciation to all of you for being a part of our journey,
Jenna
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Jenna Gabriel, EdM
Founding Executive Director
Daytime Moon Creations
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