By Melyssa Allen

Meredith's School of the Arts will provide art and entertainment during an April 16 event celebrating the opening of the new greenway that connects the College to the museum. This special event will include a grand processional across the new pedestrian bridge over the I-440 Beltline, a puppet pageant and more.

The Greenway Opening Celebration will be held from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m., starting on the Meredith College campus and ending on the N.C. Museum of Art grounds. The grand processional will begin at 11 a.m. (Meet at Meredith at 10:30 a.m. to participate).

Meredith's participation includes art displays, celebratory banners, improvisational dance and more.

Much of Meredith's participation in the celebration centers on visual art displays. Meredith visual arts students will have numerous works on display on the Meredith grounds and in the N.C. Art Museum's park.  Among the works are the following:

• Celebratory banners on the Meredith campus which were created by graphic design students under the direction of Assistant Professor of Art Melinda Fine.
• Decorative flags inspired by Tibetan prayer flags will be hung near the Meredith entrance to the bridge. These flags, designed by students in the "Fibers" class taught by Instructor of Art Georgia Springer, are intended to bring good fortune to those on journeys or pilgrimages.
• Beaded textural ceramic pieces will "grow" like giant, colorful grasses beside the museum pond. These have been created by 3D Design students under the guidance of Assistant Professor of Art Lisa Pearce. On the Meredith campus, mixed media clay and metal sculptural pieces derived from plant forms will be found along the greenway. Sculpture students designed these pieces, which were also completed under the direction of Lisa Pearce.
• Three Meredith sculpture students will present a related series of installations focusing on past, present and future in three moveable galleries which will be located near the Meredith approach to the bridge.  These interactive pieces have been collectively termed "The U-Haul Project" because of the innovative use of 19 foot U-Haul trucks as "galleries."  Katie Phillips, Rachel Souza and Rebecca Gorman conceived these works during an independent research project at Meredith during fall semester.

Thegreenway celebration will also include the following performing arts elements:

• The greenway celebration will include a ceremonial walk from Meredith's campus to the N.C. Museum of Art. The walk will feature musicians and a puppet pageant. During this portion of the celebration, 17 Meredith dance students, under the direction of Carol Finley, artistic director of Meredith Dance Theater, will perform improvisations in response to the musicians and the puppets.
• Meredith theatre students and Theatre Instructor Steven Roten will interact with and assist the puppet troupe throughout the celebration.

The Greenway Celebration is free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.ncartmuseum.org/events/festivals.shtml.