March 21, 2019

Walls Connect Instead of Divide in Downtown Beverly

by cns2020
a blue and yellow swirl on a yellow background.

The Cabot Theatre, ECCF, and Beyond Walls partner to create a North Shore cultural landmark.

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What: The Cabot Mural Launch Party
When: Thursday, March 22 at 6:00 pm
Where: The Cabot Theatre


Murals tell dramatic visual narratives about times, places, events, and people, and in The Cabot Theatre’s near 100-year history, it’s accumulated a host of stories that deserve be told.

This July, The Cabot is partnering with Lynn-based Beyond Walls to create a series of murals to be displayed on the outside walls of the theatre, murals meant to capture the eyes of passerby and tell the stories of the the theatre’s rich history.

The Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF) awarded The Cabot one of the 11 grants – part of a larger initiative meant to fund arts and cultural projects on the North Shore this year – to install these murals as part of the cultural development of downtown Beverly, to highlight the history of the theatre itself, and to attract more people to both the theatre and the district.

Tonight from 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm you can join the Cabot and Beyond Walls at the theatre for their Mural Launch. Guests are invited to celebrate the initiative with food, drinks, and art as well as giving feedback on the project and financial support and sponsorship possibilities.

Casey Soward, Executive Director at the Cabot, describes how Beyond Walls’ work in Lynn inspired the Cabot to envision these murals.

“Our hope is to inspire others to do similar projects in Beverly and to connect our local community through art,” Soward said, “as well as to make public art a more regular part of The Cabot’s programming. It’s important for our community.”

Since receiving the grant, the Cabot and Beyond Walls have put out an international call to artists to design murals will tell the theatre’s story. They know the selection process will be difficult but exciting.

In the midst of this incredible project, the Cabot is continuing to host programming in Beverly almost every weekend. They are also partnering with Berklee Performance Center as part of a new “Cabot Presents” series which will feature artists like ‘Keb ‘Mo, Lettuce, Drive-By Truckers, and India.Arie. In addition to this, they have also joined forces with Creative Collective for a series of enhanced movie experiences, the next one being Priscilla, Queen of the Desert on May 3rd.

“We’re incredibly grateful for our great collaborations with the Creative Collective and its members,” Soward said. “Artists and organizations like The Cabot need connectors to make their work more visible and fruitful, and the work of the Collective has shown how impactful those types of connections can be.”