Local ‘sparrows’ and photographers honored in Gitana Production photography/essay competition
May 10, 2010
Winning photos to be exhibited at “Eye On the Sparrow: The World Within St. Louis" opening May 21
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| First Place - by Nancy Finke of north St. Louis County |
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| Second Place - by Jessica Hentoff of Florissant |
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Third place - by Dennis O'Malley of Webster Groves and Cindy Matejcic of southwest St. Louis County
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Winning essays
ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI – Three local photographers and an essayist captured the “sparrows among us” for their prize-winning photo/essays in the Gitana Productions “Eye On The Sparrow - The World Within St. Louis” photography competition. The winners were announced this week and will be exhibited at “Eye On the Sparrow: The World Within St. Louis,” an original play by Gitana Productions which opens May 21.
The first place photo/essay by Nancy Finke of north St. Louis County featured Bonnie and Oliver Grueninger, a Florissant couple in their 70s who rise with the roosters each day to prepare their horses and ponies for youth therapeutic horsemanship sessions.
Three teenagers who have been circus performers since they were babies were the subjects of a second-place winning photo/essay by their mother Jessica Hentoff of Florissant, who described them as “three sparrows who inspire me.”
The third place photo/essay by Dennis O’Malley of Webster Groves and Cindy Matejcic of southwest St. Louis County featured their friend, 55-year-old Geri Heidepriem, who lives just a mile from Cindy. They describe her as “a sparrow who soars” despite a series of debilitating illnesses.
The black-and-white juried photography competition “Eye On The Sparrow: The World Within St. Louis” brings attention to the many extraordinary yet ordinary people who enrich our lives in the St. Louis region, according to Cecilia Nadal, executive director of Gitana Productions, a not-for-profit arts and education group that nurtures global healing in the St. Louis community through music, dance and drama.
The winning photographs and stories will be exhibited in the lobby during performances of “Eye On the Sparrow: The World Within St. Louis,” an original play by Gitana Productions which opens May 21 at St. Louis University Theatre. Written by award-winning playwright Lee Patton Chiles, the play is set on a Metro bus and is based on the actual stories of several St. Louisans from diverse backgrounds.
“I’ve been blessed to see all the little behind-the-scenes details that riders, their families and volunteers don’t get to see,” Nancy Finke said of the Grueningers, who have devoted the past 25 years of their life and savings to run Jamestown New Horizons, a therapeutic horsemanship program for children with disabilities. “”Their wealth of patience, knowledge and compassion is unsurpassed, and they make everyone feel they are part of their family.” Fink volunteers at New Horizons and has made photography her hobby since college.
Jessic Hentoff’s three children have grown up in the public eye as circus performers. They teach circus skills to other children and perform at the City Museum with the St. Louis Arches. They also have served as peace ambassadors through Circus Harmony’s “Peace Through Pyramids” collaboration with the Jewish/Arab Galilee Circus in Israel.
“These formidable young people personify Circus Harmony’s mission to defy gravity, soar with confidence and leap over social barriers,” said Hentoff, a retired circus performer who runs Circus Harmony, a St. Louis-based circus school and social circus program.
Geri Heidepriem, the subject of Dennis O’Malley’s photo and Cindy Matejcic’s essay, inspires others with her love, generosity of spirit and her good humor, despite terminal cancer, diabetes, fibromyalgia and a stroke.
“She has met every setback with determination, fortitude and grace,” said Matejcic, who has known Heidepriem since they played softball together as teenagers in Affton. “Despite her physical struggles, limitations and pain, she is always giving to others, letting people know she’s thinking of them.” Matejcic is an avid gardener, wife and mother who is passionate about people who try to make a difference in the world. O’Malley, who photographed Heidepriem, built his first darkroom at the age of 14 and has been a full-time professional photographer for more than 20 years.
The play “Eye On the Sparrow: The World Within St. Louis” will be performed at St. Louis University Theatre from May 21 through June 6, 2010. Performances are 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets are $15; seniors (65+) and students $12. A limited number of free tickets are available for people who are regular Metro riders. For details, call (314) 721-6556.
For tickets and special group rates, call (314) 721-6556 or email gitana@stlouis.missouri.org. Tickets also are available at Cafe Natasha, 3200 S. Grand; Screenz, 6680 Delmar; Macro Sun, 1310 Washington or 6273 Delmar; and the Living Insights Center, 6361 Clayton Rd.
Gitana Productions, Inc. is a not-for-profit arts and education organization dedicated to increasing cross-cultural awareness and collaboration by bringing international music, dance, and drama to the St. Louis community. Gitana events present a rarely seen diversity of international and local artists exhibiting an array of traditional and innovative artistic expressions. For more information, visit www.gitana-inc.org or call Gitana Productions at (314) 721-6556.
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Media Contact:
Mary Schanuel
mschanuel@synergy-pr.com
314.961.9772
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