Arizona Citizens For The Arts Presents 24-Hours Of Streaming Performances

Arizona Citizens for the Arts has organized a 24-hour virtual telethon featuring live-streamed performances and appearances by Arizona artists, celebrities, business owners and elected officials from across the state from 5 p.m. Friday, April 3 to 4:59 p.m. Saturday, April 4.

HEARTS for Arizona 24-Hour Virtual Telethon also will be a fundraiser for Arizona Citizens for the Arts, the statewide arts and culture advocacy organization dealing with the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

All appearances will be live streamed at www.azcitizensforthearts.org.

"We are all responding and adapting to a situation we've never faced before with self-imposed quarantines and isolation and we want to do what we can to ease some of the stress, connect Arizonans with one another and provide an entertaining escape from what are now daily routines," said Arizona Citizens for the Arts Executive Director Joseph Benesh.

Among those committed to appearing are musicians Robin Vining from Jimmy Eat World, Joey Burns of Calexico and musicians from Phoenix Afro Beat Orchestra; artists Fortoul Brothers, Faith Christiansen Smeets and Lia Littlewood from the Littlewood Fine Art & Community Co-op in Yuma; mayors from across the state; chef Lisa Kiorkis from Seven Spice Life and the Food Network.

In addition, also scheduled are

• cooking demonstrations by other local chefs,

• virtual tours of small businesses showing innovative ways they're getting goods to their customers,

• yoga demonstrations,

• a floral and bouquet-making demonstration,

• activities for children (book readings and puppet shows among them) and

• a silent auction with all of the items originally to be used during the now-postponed Governor's Arts Awards Gala, and

• thoughts and comments from elected officials including Congressman Greg Stanton.

Anyone interested in being part of the live-streaming presentations, demonstrations and performances should contact Program Manager Sarah Cirelli at SarahCirelli@azcitizensforthearts.org or by cellphone at 210-620-0836.

For more information, visit www.azcitizensforthearts.org.