On Thursday, April 9th, 2009 the actor members of the ART Children's Drama Reading Workshop, ages 8-14, performed "Heart Songs" under the direction of ART Founder, Director, and NAC Board of Governors member Jeffrey Stocker.
"Heartsongs" was written by Mattie Stepanek. He was a poet, peacemaker, and philosopher who had a book on the New York Times bestseller list at the age of five. Before dying of Dysautonomic Mitochondrial Myopathy at the age of 13 he was honored by fans who included President Jimmy Carter, Maya Angelo, Oprah, Larry King, and Jerry Lewis.
The reading was held at The National Arts Club, located at 15 Gramercy Park South in New York City. Admission is free.
Additional readings of "Heart Songs" were conducted on April 24th, April 25th, and April 26th at Marsh Hall in Port Jervis, New York.