Black Creativity Night at Play on!

Heather was born and raised on Chicago’s south side and was most recently the Executive Director of the Beverly Arts Center. Prior to that, she served as Director of the historic South Side Community Art Center in the Bronzeville neighborhood. With a nearly 20-year career in our culturally rich city, Heather’s experiences have included leadership, programming, and management with some of the Chicago’s foremost institutions including After School Matters, Gallery 37, The Chicago Park District, Marwen, The Jazz Institute, Marriott Bridges and the Quad Communities Development Corporation. Heather taught theatre and poetry performance at the South Shore Cultural Center and has developed various performing, arts integration, and teaching workshops. As a writer and storyteller, her children’s plays and performances have been produced at the DuSable Museum, the African Festival, and the Chicago Cultural Center. She was the founder of The People’s Jazz Theatre whose youth productions graced Buckingham Fountain, the 63rd Street Beach, and many other venues. Heather holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Advertising from the University of Illinois at Urbana and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Acting from DePaul University. She includes the Goodman, Redmoon, MPAACT, Pegasus Players and NBC’s ER among her acting credits. www.jazzinchicago.org

Theodis Rodgers Jr. is an acclaimed American jazz pianist, multi keyboardist, composer, and music director from Chicago, Illinois. With a career spanning more than five decades, he has established himself as one of Chicago’s most versatile and respected musical figures, working across jazz, R&B, funk, gospel, theater, television, and film. Rodgers began his professional career early, landing his first music director role at just 20 years old when he directed Curtis Mayfield’s 1980 tour. He went on to serve as music director and keyboardist for a remarkable roster of legendary artists, including Patti LaBelle, Angela Bofill, Jennifer Holliday, Sarah Vaughan, Ramsey Lewis, Freddie Hubbard, The Emotions, The Chi-Lites, The Manhattans, The Dells, Jerry Butler, Gene Chandler, and Dennis DeYoung. He also spent more than 20 years as music director for the Ebony Fashion Fair, and has toured as pianist and conductor for Sandy Hackett’s Rat Pack Show. Mr. Rodgers continues to perform regularly in Chicago and travels internationally with his piano and organ jazz trio. His album Hot Jazz is available on all streaming platforms. www.theojazzmusic.com

Somer Van Benton is an award-winning journalist at WBEZ News, Chicago’s NPR affiliate station, where she covers stories at the intersection of culture and community. Her reporting explores Black culture, entertainment, youth and sports through a human-interest lens. Somer holds degrees from Howard University’s School of Business and Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Instagram: @somervbenton | LinkedIn: Somer Van Benton