JAZZ DRAMA PROGRAM

Jazz Power Initiative (JPI), the d/b/a of The Jazz Drama Program, transforms lives through jazz music performance and education. Founded in 2003 by jazz musician Eli Yamin and teacher/writer Clifford Carlson, JPI places jazz—rooted in African American culture—at the heart of American history and identity.

Jazz Power Youth Education provides free and low-cost opportunities for youth ages 6–18 to immerse themselves in jazz through voice, piano, dance, and acting. Participants learn classic jazz and blues repertoire by artists such as Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Celia Cruz, and Billie Holiday, while also performing original youth-centered jazz musicals developed by JPI.

Jazz Power Adult Education supports teachers and teaching artists through experiential, cross-disciplinary training at our annual Jazz Power Institute, and through our weekly Community Workshop, inspired by Barry Harris. These workshops welcome singers and instrumentalists of all levels to build skill and confidence expressing themselves through jazz.

Jazz Power Community Concerts engage, inspire, and empower diverse audiences through intergenerational performances of jazz music, dance, and theatre. These concerts unite veteran artists, emerging professionals, and youth, supporting the continuum and oral traditions of jazz.

Pioneered by African Americans and Latinos more than a century ago and now shared globally, jazz offers powerful models for creative self-expression, collaborative leadership, innovative thinking, and cross-cultural exchange.

Through performance and education, Jazz Power Initiative reaches thousands of New Yorkers and visitors annually in Upper Manhattan—serving audiences ages 6 to 80+—while elevating historically marginalized voices and building more creative and inclusive communities through jazz.