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The Art of Me | “We’re Here Together”

Published June 19, 2024

On Friday, June 7, a group of 14 clients from our life enrichment program, staff, and the teaching artists from Upstream Arts proudly presented “The Art of Me” at Hanifl Performing Arts Center in White Bear Lake.

A collaboration between Merrick and Upstream Arts, “The Art of Me” featured live art, musical instruments, skits, songs, poems, dancing, and lots of laughter from both performers and audience members alike. The theme of the morning was “I’m here! You’re here! We’re here together!” This statement more than anything perfectly encapsulated the feelings of joy and connection that emulated from the performers.

For the artists on stage, the performance represented the accumulation of several months of collaboration between the clients at Merrick and the Upstream Arts’ teaching artists during which relationships were built and the creative arts were explored.

The performance marked the third time that Merrick has partnered with Upstream Arts to create such a production, which is a record for the number of times that an organization has partnered with Upstream Arts. And based on the feedback from this year’s production, it probably won’t be the last.