The Juicers, September 2015

Our September Red Room had the challenge of hosting two different activities: our third musical open-mike fundraiser to benefit The Playing For Change Foundation, and warming up a brand new space in the Taipei Air Force base for the evening Stage Time and Wine. Our objective was to fill the space with music, rhythm, color, and life.

The Red Roomers had done a beautiful job of putting the enormous room together on such short notice. We now have a new cash bar area, which is primarily for the evening events, but Stage Time and Juice continued its tradition of encouraging participants to bring food and beverages for our community table. I am pleased to say we had a very generous spread this time, with even newcomers pitching in.

We were happy to welcome back many Juice performers that we had not seen in a long time: a pair of siblings played the saxophone and performed a challenging vocal solo from a musical. We also had two other pairs of siblings return to the stage, who delight us with their performances quite frequently. This time there were some handbells and an advanced version of a popular hand game: scissors-paper-rock-Spock-lizard that they wanted to introduce to everyone. There was also a violin performance and a song.

Our new performance area is about twice the size of the old Red Room on Da An Road. We had no problem filling it with a circle game of “Who Stole the Cookie in the Cookie Jar?” led by Catherine Daigle. Julian banged on the traditional drum as he tried to trap the Juicers in a percussion version of Musical Statues.

After stage time was completed, the Juicers had some quiet time folding origami cranes and other flying objects which were then floated to the 5 meter high ceiling of the space on big red helium balloons.

Photos courtesy of Carol Yao and Feebe Ng

Here is our impression of the event from some of our Stage Time and Juicers:

“I was surprised that the Red Room was so big, and I never knew that they SELL drinks. When I saw people doing their show, I felt nervous, and I didn’t think my show was good enough. I am looking forward to the next Red Room to perform a better show.” –Michael.

At Stage Time and Juice, our motive is to produce collective happiness that we hope can touch the lives of the participants when they leave the room. And sometimes we try to reach just a bit further. In this case, we donated half of our ticket sales to the Playing For Change Foundation: US $100. The Executive Director sent us a personal email to thank us for the amount:

Dear Carol,

When we join together, so much more is possible! Thank you for participating in a global celebration of music and love. Your recent gift of $100.00 in support of the 5th annual Playing For Change Day will bring music into the lives of children who will learn, grow, and discover their potential.
Earlier this year, the students and teachers of the Khlong Toey Music Program in Thailand joined together for a meaningful benefit event. They organized a concert to raise funds for their fellow PFCF students in our Nepal programs in order to help them recover from the recent earthquake. Now, these students know that they can make positive change in this world through teamwork. We are so proud of the loving commitment they’ve expressed through music and during this event.
The Khlong Toey program actually grew out of a PFC Day celebration. Two women working in the Khlong Toey slum met while planning the event and started a program to bring music into the lives of these vulnerable people. The Ripple Effect of that partnership and cooperation is moving out in all directions, through the recent benefit concert to the children in Nepal and around the world. And last year, PFC Day celebrations in Curitiba, Brazil involved more than 80 performances and laid the foundation for the new Cajuru Music School, which is opening this summer.
Thank you for being a part of this year’s beautiful unfolding, with over 300 events in 52 countries! The Ripple Effect of music and love is moving out from so many communities and into the hearts of so many children. We are deeply grateful for your support!
One Love from all of us,

Elizabeth Hunter
Executive Director