Official Press Release

ATLANTA — Big Sky Countries, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of issues from education to poverty, will create a mural in commemoration of the Alliance Theatre’s season premiere, Twist, an exciting new retelling of the classic Oliver Twist.

The new mural will grace the Covenant House Community Center on Broad Street in downtown Atlanta. Big Sky Countries’ founder Nichole Blackburn’s mural will depict the journey youth served by Covenant House make in transitioning from homelessness to independent living with a message to twist your destiny and reach for the sky. This weeklong installation will start on Friday, August 20 culminating with a dedication and unveiling on Thursday, August 26 at 9:30 a.m. The community center is a branch of Covenant House Georgia and provides case management, life-ready vocational training, GED classes and job assistance services for homeless youth aged 16-21.

Twist is an American musical, inspired by the Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist, set in New Orleans in 1928. There, an orphan in search of home finds family in the most unexpected of places. Twist is the story of the emotional struggle of an orphan named Twist, whose father was a black song-and-dance man and whose mother was a southern white aristocrat, seeking a place to belong and a family to love. Guided by a fierce yearning for home, Twist experiences the journey from being a homeless youth to finding a place of his own, overcoming much the same struggles as the youth served by Covenant House. “In creating Twist, a resounding message of hope emerged – hope for the future for homeless children everywhere who are seeking a place to call home.” said Tena Clark, composer/lyricist for Twist. “We thought the message was powerful enough that if should be communicated to the youth of Atlanta. That idea manifested itself in this mural which will be a permanent, visible representation of the message of Twist.”

Big Sky Countries is a non-profit organization based in Los Angeles that donates large-scale murals to children’s facilities around the world. Since 2006, murals have been painted in Thailand, Ireland, the Philippines, Bolivia, New Orleans, and Los Angeles. These children’s facilities include elementary schools, orphanages, children’s hospitals and youth centers. In all of the murals, there is one thing in common: a sky. Each sky in each mural is one that artist and Big Sky Countries’ Founder, Nichole Blackburn, had seen in the previous country she had visited. For example, the sky painted at the orphanage in the Philippines was a blue sky and clouds that Nichole had seen while painting in Ireland. And the sky in the Los Angeles donation mural is one that Nichole saw in New Orleans during sunrise. “Each mural is a true reminder to stay humble, appreciate what we have, and realize that no matter what country we come from, we are all under the same sky,” says Blackburn. www.BigSkyCountries.com

Twist, sets the stage for the Atlanta theatre season as the season premiere for the Alliance Theatre’s big, bold, blockbuster 2010-11 Season. The award-winning creative team includes William F. Brown, author of the Wiz; nationally renowned composer Tena Clark; Nashville composer Gary Prim, legendary choreographer and director Debbie Allen; and six time Tony nominee and musical director of Dancing with the Stars, Harold Wheeler.

The Alliance Theatre is a division of the Woodruff Arts Center in Atlanta, Georgia, which also includes the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, High Museum of Art and Young Audiences.

About Covenant House Georgia – Covenant House is the largest privately funded childcare agency in the United States providing shelter and service to homeless and runaway youth. It was incorporated in New York City in 1972 and has since expanded to more than 20 cities in the Canada, North and Central America. Covenant House was called to Georgia when the leadership of Peachtree Presbyterian Church became troubled by the problem of youth homelessness in the metropolitan Atlanta area. In 1997, Covenant House began to work closely with other agencies and community development groups to assess the needs of the homeless and at-risk youth of Atlanta. The clear message was that the Covenant House program was needed in Atlanta. We opened our doors of the Community Service Center at 72 Broad Street on August 7, 2000. Through the years, our mission has remained constant – to give our youth the unconditional love and respect they may have never felt, and to help them reach their potential. Since opening the Community Service Center on Broad Street in August 2000 more than 6,000 young people have walked through the doors looking for assistance with shelter, food, clothing, education and employment. Every day, since our opening in Atlanta, young men and women have come to us in search of crisis counseling, employment, a GED diploma or a safe place to sleep.

Behind the Scenes…Atlanta Donation Mural

“4 days into the mural …It has been such an experience out here in Atlanta! I am honestly so delirious tired. Jeanne (volunteer artist who came from Florida) and I have been charging it and painting like crazy. I am pushing us, and I think myself even harder. It is such a huge experience out here, both physically and emotionally challenging, with so much to deliver in a short amount of time I am feeling the pressure.

Up at 5am everyday, dressed, breakfast at the hotel, an Americano Starbucks (triple or quattro espresso.), then head to the outer limits of town to paint a 25foot mural at Covenant House – a teen homeless shelter off the 75/80 freeway. “Teen-Homeless-Shelter”: Those three words have sunk in beyond measure in the last few days. More than I expected. And I tell you this: This is not the first teen shelter I’ve worked at. But this one has really affected me.

There is something about being here in the South. The poverty is different. The mentality is very different. I have been painting 14 hour days, no breaks, starting the morning I arrived at 7am from LA. The 25 foot mural is being painted in the Girls “Lounge”. The Girls Lounge really means the Main Room both boysand girls at the facility hangout in. I will tell you more about the facility in person, but I can express one thing – I am so affected by the Staff and the Youth here. (Oh, and there’s only one white guy. And he’s pretty much Southern black, too.) There are girls here who are missing fingers from being beaten. Boys who have been outcast by their loved ones because they are gay. Every kind of abuse you can imagine. There is violence, drug-addiction and emotions run tense and high day-to-day. Everyday new teens are being admitted. When we work late at night, the over flow of teens are sleeping and hanging with us in the girls lounge.

On the light-hearted side – As hard and as fast and furious as we are painting, it is *so* appreciated by everyone. It is so very heartfelt and so real.  I wish I could explain it as much as I feel it in my heart. …And we are having fun. And I am laughing a lot. Yeah! I got a little more flavor in me since I’ve been out here. I am loving their culture. It’s so different and amazingly interesting. … I now know quite a lot about how Southern girls black girls do their hair – painstakingly twisting, flattening, and taming those crazy locks. Man. I can now paint African American skin beautifully – deep blues, dark browns and mahogoney (thank you, William Cochran!).

I am so appreciative to have the opportunity to work on this donation mural here in Atlanta. Even after all the long hours, crazy pressure and non-stop painting, I find so much inspiration from the youth and teens I have met at the facility. I feel very blessed and appreciative to have this experience, and I truly hope to make everyone proud.”

*The Atlanta donation mural was completed in 5 days. This  mural was made possible by Kevin Chianta at DMI Music and was completed at a a teen homeless shelter, sponsored by the Alliance Theatre, located in downtown Atlanta. *

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Hello world!

Big Sky Countries is a non-profit organization founded in 2008 whose main focus is donating large-scale murals to children’s facilities around the world. Since 2006, murals have been painted in Thailand, Ireland, the Philippines, Bolivia, New Orleans, and Los Angeles. These children’s facilities include elementary schools, orphanages, children’s hospitals and youth centers. All children, faculty members, and well, everyone is encouraged to paint. Welcome to our Blog. We look forward to posting information about our latest projects and world travels! Visit our website www.BigSkyCountries.com to learn more about how you can get involved!