Harlem KW Project, LLC
Jaylene Clark Owens
Executive Director
Producer, Director, Publicist, Playwright, Actress (Bridget)
Jaylene Clark Owens is a Philly resident from Harlem, NY. She is a highly acclaimed poet, as well as an AUDELCO and Barrymore Award winning actress. She is the author of “AfroPoetic,” her debut collection of poetry, now available on her website. She fell in love with spoken word poetry in 2005 when she was on the 1st Place Urban Word New York Team at the International Brave New Voices Poetry Slam. Her poetry has taken her to some of the biggest stages, including the Apollo Theater where she won first place in the Amateur Night competition. She is proudly an alum of the prestigious theatre-in-verse #BARS Workshop at the Public Theater, led by Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs. Jaylene’s poetry is powerful, engaging, and her performance combines elements of her background as a professional actress. Her acting abilities earned her a place in The Wilma Theater’s resident acting company, HotHouse. In addition to performing spoken word, she is also a teaching artist. She has taught several poetry writing workshops with students ranging from second grade to adults.
Website: JayleneClarkOwens.com
Twitter: Twitter.com/Jaylene_C_Owens
Facebook: Facebook.com/JayleneClarkOwens
Instagram: Instagram.com/JayleneClarkOwens
YouTube: YouTube.com/c/JayleneClarkOwens
Producer, Director, Publicist, Playwright, Actress (Bridget)
Jaylene Clark Owens is a Philly resident from Harlem, NY. She is a highly acclaimed poet, as well as an AUDELCO and Barrymore Award winning actress. She is the author of “AfroPoetic,” her debut collection of poetry, now available on her website. She fell in love with spoken word poetry in 2005 when she was on the 1st Place Urban Word New York Team at the International Brave New Voices Poetry Slam. Her poetry has taken her to some of the biggest stages, including the Apollo Theater where she won first place in the Amateur Night competition. She is proudly an alum of the prestigious theatre-in-verse #BARS Workshop at the Public Theater, led by Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs. Jaylene’s poetry is powerful, engaging, and her performance combines elements of her background as a professional actress. Her acting abilities earned her a place in The Wilma Theater’s resident acting company, HotHouse. In addition to performing spoken word, she is also a teaching artist. She has taught several poetry writing workshops with students ranging from second grade to adults.
Website: JayleneClarkOwens.com
Twitter: Twitter.com/Jaylene_C_Owens
Facebook: Facebook.com/JayleneClarkOwens
Instagram: Instagram.com/JayleneClarkOwens
YouTube: YouTube.com/c/JayleneClarkOwens
Hollis Heath
|
Associate Director
Co-Producer, Playwright, Actress (Toni) Hollis Heath is an AUDELCO- award winning theater artist, youth strategist and writer from New York City. She earned her Master’s in Educational Theatre from The City College of New York and was featured as “Great Grad” upon graduation. In her final commencement address as First Lady, Michelle Obama commended Hollis for her work as a theater artist and champion for girls. Hollis has developed, designed and facilitated programming and curricula for organizations throughout NYC. She attributes her ability to connect with young people of all backgrounds to her diverse work experiences, from elite private schools, to juvenile detention centers. Her youth empowerment work is grounded in theatre practice, and has led to multiple invitations to the White House under the Obama Administration. In addition, she’s received awards from the YMCA, Harlem Arts Alliance, and NYC Office of Equity and Access. Most recently, she was awarded a scholarship to study at the United Citizens Brigade Training Center, the only accredited comedy school in the United States. When Hollis is not working or connecting with young people, she can be found scouring the internet for flight deals, enjoying arts & culture in her beloved city, or brainstorming her next artistic pursuit. Instagram: Instagram.com/heartofhollis Twitter: www.twitter.com/hollisofharlem |
Janelle Taylor
|
Associate Director
Co-Producer, Playwright, Actress (Shayla) Janelle Taylor is an AUDELCO award winning actress, spoken word artist, DJ, and high school Theater and Spoken Word teacher at KIPP NYC College Prep High School for the past 11 years. Heatley received her Bachelors of Fine Arts at SUNY Purchase Acting Conservatory. A few theater credits include Intimate Apparel (Mayme) dir. by Dean Irby; The Odyssey (Circe) dir. by Woodie King, Jr.; An Evening of One Acts (Jill) dir. by Craig Bacon; Medea (Fate #2) and Trojan Woman (Choral Leader). She holds a Masters in Educational Theater at City College. Janelle has produced over 100 theater productions for New Heritage Theater Company and was one of the assistant producers for Harlem Week 2006 and 2007. She has also been the lead stage manager for the Kwanzaa fest at the Museum of Natural History for the past 11 years. Heatley works with youth in the NY tri-state area to help develop their craft as young artists. She previously DJ'd a charter school (KIPP) Teacher's Conference in Las Vegas, to over 2,000 teachers. |
|
Chyann Sapp
|
Associate Director
Co-Producer, Playwright Chyann Sapp is a sui generis civic leader with professional experience in the public and private sectors. As the Associate Director of Government and Programs at a tech-based nonprofit, she is responsible for cultivating strategic relationships and implementing innovative consulting tools with partners across the country. After spending seven years working in government relations for the city and state, Ms. Sapp believes that the key to igniting an engaged citizenry is investing in transparent and targeted outreach. In 2011, she became the first Youth Voter Coordinator of New York City, a role that allowed her to develop and oversee highly-regarded programming such as Student Voter Registration Day. Last year, the program was recognized by Mayor Bill de Blasio and the Department of Education to become an annual initiative across NYC’s public and charter high schools. In addition to her government experience, Ms. Sapp worked for three years in real estate sales as an agent and the Chief Marketing Officer of an award-winning team. She was turned to for her uptown expertise by several publications including the New York Times, Bloomberg, and NY Daily News. She is a recipient of the “Making a Difference” award from New York Organ Donor Network and most recently was accepted to participate in the Summer Institute of Civic Studies at Tufts University. Chyann Sapp is a Harlem native and holds a BA in Africana Studies and Romance Languages from Hunter College. LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/chyannsapp/ Twitter: Twitter.com/chyannsapp |