Journey Arts

Over 20 years of vibrant performances, meaningful dialogue, & social change.

05/21/2026

TO BE HERE is a medley of voices, from lead artists Magda Martinez and Lynda Black to participants to collaborators. Today, meet one of the collaborators bringing TO BE HERE to life: Tanaquil Márquez.

A bilingual theater artist, director, and educator, Tanaquil creates work that begins with people, weaving together their stories, memories, languages, and lived experiences. Her collaborative process invites communities to bring their full selves into the room, creating performances shaped by honesty, mysticism, and deep care for one another.

As director of the performance elements of TO BE HERE, Tanaquil is helping guide this shared creative journey, weaving together the many voices and stories that make this project possible.

What does it take to be here now? Get your tickets for TO BE HERE on June 11, 12, and 13, and let’s journey together and find out.

journeyarts.org/25-26-season/to-be-here

05/20/2026

TO BE HERE is a medley of voices, from participants to artists to collaborators. Today, meet one of the collaborators bringing TO BE HERE to life: Anula Shetty.

An award-winning filmmaker, producer, and educator, Anula creates work that bridges experimental media, community storytelling, and place-based history. From documentary film to interactive apps to video installations, her practice finds new ways to bring oral histories and lived experiences to life, and to put them in the hands of the communities they belong to.

As a collaborator on TO BE HERE, Anula brings her deep commitment to community voice and innovative storytelling to this shared creative journey, helping to shape how these stories are seen, heard, and experienced through film.

What does it take to be here now? Get your tickets for TO BE HERE on June 11, 12, and 13, and let's journey together and find out.

journeyarts.org/25-26-season/to-be-here

05/19/2026

NEW ON THE BLOG: What does it mean to belong, to gather, and to spend a year in reflection and creation? Gerard Silva, a participant in TO BE HERE, talks with Journey Arts’ Executive Director Carly Rapaport-Stein about being a part of the creative process. From a cherished pilón passed down by his beloved Tía Flor to the unexpected connections that flourished with fellow participants, Gerard shares how this community gathering project created space for vulnerability, belonging, and the kind of honoring that art makes possible.

Read on this way --> journeyarts.org/blog/part-of-us-still-dreams-of-being-there-gerard-silva-reflects

05/14/2026

NEW on the blog: What does it take to create a performance and exhibition like TO BE HERE?

A series of deep listening and creative sessions. Countless more potluck meals. Strangers becoming an ensemble. Stories of grandparents, of first friends, of neighborhoods that no longer exist in the ways they once did. Objects from home that turned out to be museum-worthy all along.

Venture behind the scenes with Lynda Grace and Magda Martinez as they reflect on the making of TO BE HERE.

Read this way --> journeyarts.org/blog/inside-the-making-of-to-be-here

05/11/2026

Meet TO BE HERE co-creator Magda Martinez, a Philadelphia artist whose work is inspired by the cotidiano — the small, luminous moments that quietly shape who we are and where we belong. A poet, vocalist, and playwright, Magda writes and creates so that we can tell our own stories in our own voices, weaving together art and community life across stages, organizations, and movements both local and far beyond.

Her latest work brings that mission into intimate focus. In TO BE HERE, Magda shapes the stories of Philadelphians into an original performance that traces a multitude of journeys to, in, and around the experience of being here now.

What does it take to be here now? Join Magda on June 11, 12, and 13 for TO BE HERE to journey together and find out.

journeyarts.org/25-26-season/to-be-here

05/08/2026

Meet TO BE HERE co-creator Lynda Grace Black, a Philadelphia-born artist whose hands have always known how to hold a story. Her work takes shape as twine, yarn, and fabric soft sculptures, collages, and vessels that explore our deepest human connections from tragedy to triumph to everything in between.

In TO BE HERE, Lynda asks a question of belonging that we can only answer together, shaping the stories of Philadelphians into a one-of-a-kind exhibition tracing a multitude of journeys to, in, and around the experience of being here now.

What does it take to be here now? Join Lynda on June 11, 12, and 13 for TO BE HERE to journey together and find out.

journeyarts.org/25-26-season/to-be-here

05/02/2026

The Table Sessions were pure joy. Thanks to for her extraordinary film and curation, for a dance party like no other, and for nourishing our bodies and hearts.

And to you. Thank YOU for being there, and we can’t wait to see you in June for TO BE HERE.

📸 : Steve Weinik

04/30/2026

We’ve got one ticket left for TONIGHT’s Table Sessions on Thursday, April 30! Will you be the lucky 100th guest that makes it a sold out show? Tickets this way —> www.journeyarts.org/25-26-season/table-sessions-expanding-sanctuary

04/29/2026

“What does it mean to belong—right now, in this moment, in this city?” is a question we’ve explored as the 2025-26 season unfolds like a map.
Here’s what’s next:
Journey Arts’ beloved Table Sessions returns on April 29 and 30, curated this year by filmmaker Kristal Sotomayor, and featuring Kristal’s film, kumbia-klezmer-punk band Mariposas Galácticas, and dinner from Chef Cristina Martínez of South Philly Barbacoa.
And then, a new community-rooted performance and installation project that brings Philadelphians together to share stories of journeys, home, and connection. Lynda Grace Black and Magda Martinez debut the performance and exhibition TO BE HERE on June 11-13.
Find your place at the shows:
https://www.journeyarts.org/25-26-season

Address

Philadelphia, PA

Telephone

+12677530757

Website

http://www.journeyarts.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Journey Arts posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Journey Arts:

Shortcuts

Want your organization to be the top-listed Non Profit Organization in Philadelphia?