City Council President Bernard C. "Jack" Young Performs with Collington Square Students

On December 20, 2011 at 12:00 noon City Council President Bernard "Jack" Young and Eastern District Baltimore City Police Commander Major Melvin Russell joined an all male cast of middle grades students at Collington Square School of the Arts to perform a new play: It's Not About Things, It's About People!: A Holiday Celebration.

Council President Young portrayed a Baltimore City Sanitation Worker whose son is embarrassed by his father's job. Major Russell played a police officer who has an interaction with a group of young African-American men on the street. The situation changes the perception that the young men and the police officer have of one another for the better.

The play was written in collaboration with the students in Collington Square's Theater Arts Class, which is taught by Koli Tengella of Social Justice Theater.

The performance was part of Collington Square School of the Arts' annual Winter Program, which featured the school's outstanding arts programs. The event included a choir performance led by Choir Director Daniel Dorsey, a band performance led by Music Teacher Josh Soto, and a spoken word poetry performance, which was facilitated by Librarian/Media Specialist Dawn Edward.

"The Arts are alive at Collington Square School and Mr. Tengella's drama groups are just one example of the outstanding opportunities our students have for creative self expression," said Larry Schugam, Executive Vice President of the Baltimore Curriculum Project.

"We were delighted to have Councilman President Young and Major Russell join us."

We would like to thank Council President Young and Major Russell for taking the time to perform with our students.

To view more videos of the play and other performances visit: http://www.youtube.com/baltimorecp