As the nation ramps up to the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA30) on July 26, 2020, the 50-member ADA Lead On “Core Production Team” (in front of and behind the camera/keyboard) and 22 ADA Generation bloggers, influencers and signal boosters are focused and determined to set the record straight, flip the script on educating, entertaining and empowering people with (and without) disabilities with the creation and production of ADA30 Lead On: Celebration of Disability Arts, Culture, Education & Pride as they present this two hour, 15 minute entertaining, educational and empowering journey through the five titles of the Americans with Disabilities Act, landmark civil rights legislation on Thursday, July 23, 2020 from 7:00 – 9:15 pm ET on YouTube and Facebook Live.
All too often ignored by Hollywood and media employers, ADA30 Lead On Production Team created and now presents an all-star ensemble cast of Deaf and disabled performers, artists, filmmakers, storytellers, disability leaders, policymakers and key influencers who boldly own this narrative and created this show – meeting weekly for months – all from their own homes, across the country during this pandemic (instead of our original plan at the Kennedy Center) – with Disability Power & Pride. People with disabilities are 26% of the population – only 2% of media – and 100% cast and crew of ADA30 Lead On: Celebration of Disability Arts, Culture, Education & Pride.
Thanks to Lead Sponsor AT&T, the entire ADA30 Lead On Core Production Team and 22 ADA Generation bloggers from multiply-marginalized communities will all be paid a stipend and will all appear in the end credits created by Exceptional Minds. The show has multiple accessibility features including open sign language interpreters, open captions and open audio descriptions by Point 360 and Woman of Her Word.
Because of past erasure from history, it is very important to us that during this celebration, voices of Deaf and disabled talent, ADA Generation bloggers, social media influencers and signal boosters of color from multiply marginalized communities are amplified to make sure that BIPOC voices, contributions, ideas and aspirations are part of this celebration, and of future events. #ADA30LeadOn
Appearances include: Danny Woodburn, emcee; Tony Award-winner Ali Stroker; Academy Award-winner Marlee Matlin; Comedian/performers Maysoon Zayid, Geri Jewell, Kathy Buckley, Nic Novicki, Nina G., Andy Arias, Shannon DeVido, Selene Luna, and Michael Beers.
Singer-Songwriters – Emmanuel Kelly/NEVER ALONE; Anita Hollander/BODY OF THE FIGHTER with ASL Deaf Performer Alexandria Wailes; Elaine Kolb/WE WILL RIDE and NOT DEAD YET; Jeff Moyer/ADA ANTHEM; Johnny Crescendo and the Pop Squad/PRIDE; and KripHop Nation’s Leroy Moore & Keith Jones/MY ADA STORY. NEVER ALONE In Memoriam edited by Bus Door Films’ Bradley Gantt and Ruan du Plessis with ASL Deaf performers: Michelle Banks, Erika Chirino, CJ Jones, Dickie Hearts, Krissy Lemon, and John McGinty.
Dancers – Alice Sheppard’s Kinetic Light/DESCENT; Heidi Latsky Dance/ON DISPLAY; Infinite Flow/Marisa Hamamoto and Auti Angel; Alie B. Gorrie, Evan Ruggiero, Blake Stadnick; and Full Radius.
Performers and/or ADA30 Birthday greetings by Poet Maria R. Palacios/CRIP WORDS OF ADVICE TO A YOUNGER GENERATION; Camryn Manheim and Cole Sibus, CJ Jones, RJ Mitte, Christine Bruno, Eileen Grubba, Diana Elizabeth Jordan, David Harrell, David Zimmerman, Marilee Talkington, Natalie Gross; Tal Anderson, Treshelle Edmond, Jerald Creer, Antoine Hunter, Performing Arts Studio West, Jenni Gold, Mark Ozdoba’s Mr. & Mrs. Snowman; SAG-AFTRA’s Gabrielle Carteris, Rebecca Damon and Camryn Manheim.
Disability Leaders: Senator Tom Harkin, Judith Heumann, Tony Coelho, Haben Girma, ADAPT’s Anita Cameron & Heath Montgomery, Maria Town/AAPD, Kelly Buckland/NCIL, Jim Weissman/United Spinal, Shaun Castle/PVA, Diane Coleman/NDY and Dan Fisher/NCMHR.
Government colleague greetings – Neil Romano/Chairman, National Council on Disability, Shelley Reeves/NIDILRR-ACL, Charles Baldwin/Mass Cultural Council, National Endowment for the Arts’ chairman Mary Anne Carter and Accessibility Director, Beth Bienvenu; Governor Tom Ridge; ADA/Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities – Victor Calise/NYC, Stephen David Simon/Los Angeles, Nicole Bohn/San Francisco, Rachel Arfa/Chicago, Kristen McKosh/Boston, David Newburger/St. Louis, and Rachel Tanenhaus/Cambridge.
Trailers – courtesy of filmmakers: Jim LeBrecht and Nicole Newham/CRIP CAMP, Day Al-Mohamed/INVALID CORP, Eric Neudel and Alison Gilkey/LIVES WORTH LIVING, Yaara Kedem and Isaac Zablocki/ReelAbilities Film Festival NY.
Visual artists – Gina Klawitter/ALL THE WAY TO FREEDOM, Oaklee Thiele-DisArt-Ford Foundation/MY DEAREST FRIENDS, plus Edmonroe and Neil Marcus/EvoluTOn of a Movement; Photographs – Tom Olin/The Tom Olin Collection, an AT&T Humanity of Connection recipient.
Sponsor greetings – AT&T’s David Huntley, Bri King-Offord, Abdi Warsame, and Yasmine Jonaidi; Rodger DeRose/Kessler Foundation; Nic Novicki/Easterseals Disability Film Challenge; Candace Cable/Foundation for Global Sports Development and Sidewinder Films; Kathy Martinez/Wells Fargo; Karen Goss/Mid-Atlantic ADA Center; and Laura Owens/TransCen.
Accessibility – Open audio description/open captions provided by Woman of Her Word and Point 360, audio described by Michele Spitz. Sign Language interpreters Mara Bassani-Santamaria & Elena Lee provided by Bill Pugin’s The Sign Language Company. CART for meetings by ACS.
ADA30 Lead On logo designed by Dan Wilkins.
Music Supervisor – Reggie Luck; Editors – Liz Pritchard, Tim Doran, Trelanda Lowe, Jd Michaels and Sady Paulson; Writers’ Zoom – Danny Woodburn, Day Al-Mohamed, Mark Ozdoba and Tari Hartman Squire; Production & Design – Jd Michaels; End credits – Exceptional Minds.
Talent Outreach Committees and Allies – Christine Bruno, Kallen Blair Prosterman, Andy Arias, Nina G., Alie B. Gorrie, Diana Elizabeth Jordan, Nic Novicki, DisArts’ Jill Vyn and Chris Smit, Elisabeth Axel/Art Beyond Sight, Beth Bienvenu/NEA; Casting Society of America’s Russell Boast, Caroline Liem, Danielle Demchick, Kendra Castleberry, John Ort, Michael Sanford, and Stephanie Klapper.
Website Team: Dustin Snowadsky, Gina Klawitter, Jill Vyn and Chris Smit, Mark Ozdoba; ADA Generation blogger coordinator – Anita Cameron
Social Media Team: Alec Frazier, Alexa De Alejandro, Allilsa Fernandez, Andrea Dobynes, Christine Wu, Donna Russo, Elsa Sjunneson, Jake Hytken, Javier Guisado, Kayla Smith, Lydia X. Z.Brown, Max Megan Elizabeth Morris, Mayra Puma, Meriah Nichols, Michele Lee, Millie Gonzalez, Nicole Leblanc, Nina G., Rachel Handler, Safiya Eshe Gyasi, Shannon O’Hara Wiora, Stella Tiyoy, and Vicki Landers.
Produced and directed by Tari Hartman Squire and Danny Woodburn; Associate producer Karen Goss; Production assistants – Emma McElroy, Allilsa Fernandez, Candace Cable, and Mark Ozdoba.
We appreciate Yoshiko Dart for blessing our ADA30 Lead On name with Justin Dart’s signature phrase, Lead On.
Sponsors – AT&T, The Ability Center, Bus Door Films, Easterseals Disability Film Challenge, EIN SOF Communications, Exceptional Minds, Foundation for Global Sports Development, Kessler Foundation, Lights! Camera! Access!, michaels.adams., Mid-Atlantic ADA Center, Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation, Mulberry Tree Group, Point 360, PolicyWorks, TransCen, Wells Fargo, Woman of Her Word.
Image description – Two gold comedy and tragedy masks with red and blue accessible/lip readable PPE face masks revealing the smile of comedy and the frown of tragedy, next to a paint brush that is creating a musical staff that ends with a silhouette of Alice Sheppard, dancer using a wheelchair. The words ADA30 LEAD ON at the top, with Celebration of Disability Arts, Culture, Education & Pride appear at the bottom.
ADA30 Lead On Celebrity Promos:
Marlee Matlin – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12tS6JEykQY
Ali Stroker – https://youtu.be/hxVo3iddlwk
Maysoon Zayid – https://youtu.be/V2lByyCDITw
Anita Cameron and Elaine Kolb’s WE WILL RIDE – https://youtu.be/xmLV4cqGMDo
Maria R. Palacios/CRIP ADVICE TO THE YOUNGER GENERATION – https://youtu.be/k5nsRvKO9Lo
KripHop Nation’s Leroy Moore and Keith Jones/MY ADA STORY – https://youtu.be/s3DP2Vf9RLo
CJ Jones – https://youtu.be/Ec1e3FnT8iQ
Gina Klatwitter – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgozWV52-kk
Streaming on YouTube & Facebook Live July 23 from 7:00 – 9:15 pm ET
Register Free at: ADA30LeadOn.Eventbrite.com
