FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 21, 2022
Contact: Chris Watford
(413) 528-5485
CATA HIRES WES BUCKLEY AND BETH LIEBOWITZ IN NEW STAFF AND FACULTY POSITIONS—New staff positions will allow CATA to grow programs and performance opportunities for artists with disabilities
GREAT BARRINGTON, MA— Community Access to the Arts (CATA) announces the appointment of Wes Buckley and Beth Liebowitz in new roles as staff members and faculty artists. Wes Buckley joins CATA as Music Specialist and Faculty Artist, and Beth Liebowitz as Dance Faculty and Performance Projects Manager.
In recent years, CATA has dramatically expanded the breadth and impact of its programs serving people with disabilities. In their new roles, Wes and Beth will bring their teaching skills to arts workshops in the CATA studio and throughout Berkshire and Columbia Counties. They will also support CATA Program Directors Jeff Gagnon, Kelly Galvin, and Kara Smith in working to grow programs and performance opportunities for artists with disabilities.
“We are excited to welcome Wes and Beth in these new, expanded roles at CATA,” says Margaret Keller, CATA Executive Director. “These new positions will make it possible for us to pilot new programs and art forms for CATA artists, to produce new performances of all scopes and sizes, and reach more artists with disabilities across our community.”
Wes Buckley is a musician, songwriter, instrument builder, and educator. Since joining CATA as a Faculty Artist in 2018, Wes has taught music and songwriting workshops in every area of CATA’s programming—including middle schools, high schools, day-habilitation programs, community spaces, and elder care settings. In his new role, Wes will explore creative new approaches to music-making and create opportunities for artists with disabilities to collaborate across artforms.
Beth Liebowitz is a dancer, choreographer, and movement therapist who has newly relocated to the Berkshires after seven years as the Program Director at The Greens at Greenwich in Connecticut. In her work with elders and artists with disabilities, Beth is focused on supporting artistry through the incorporation of embodied social justice and the intentional integration of socially just practices. In addition to bringing this work to schools and day programs throughout CATA’s service area, Beth will also help produce CATA performances and sharings.
CATA is at an especially exciting stage, with a beautiful new building, robust community partnerships, and expanding programs. CATA has cultivated strong partnerships with 50 community-based organizations, including disability agencies, residences, and schools to serve over 800 people with disabilities through 1,800 annual arts workshops. The nonprofit successfully navigated the challenges of the pandemic financially and artistically, deepening its commitment to artists with disabilities by piloting new art forms, dramatically growing programs for students with disabilities in local schools, and strengthening equity and inclusion initiatives.
About Community Access to the Arts: Community Access to the Arts (CATA) nurtures and celebrates the creativity of people with disabilities. Through dynamic arts workshops and public events, CATA artists tap into their potential, explore new talents, and share their unique points of view with the wider community. CATA collaborates with 50 partner organizations to bring visual and performing arts programs to 800 people with disabilities across Berkshire County, Massachusetts and Columbia County, New York. Learn more at cata-staging.mystagingwebsite.com/.
###
