Houston’s 9th annual ReelAbilities Film & Arts Festival, produced by Host City Organizer The JFS Alexander Institute for Inclusion in collaboration with the Houston Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, today announced the talent line-up of ReelMusic 2021, the Festival’s final-night celebratory concert that each year caps the event’s ten-plus days of film, art, speaker and music events.

Virtual this year and themed around The Power of Music to Lift Us Up, ReelMusic 2021 will stream on various platforms Wednesday, February 24, at 7:00 PM CST. It will showcase the talents of four Houston singers and songwriters who live with disabilities and will also feature a special drop-in message from Tony Award-winner Ali Stroker, who made history as the first actor in a wheelchair to appear on Broadway.

Local singer-songwriters Kyle Cousins, Emmanuel Gilligan and Toni Hickman will perform original music spanning rock to soft rock to rap. Vocalist Sashi Nisankarao will perform an original ballad co-written by Jeff Franzel, former Houstonian and prolific New York-based songwriter.  

A house band comprised of some of Houston’s most sought-after musicians – David Craig on bass, Daleton Lee on drums, Art Fristoe on keys and Tito Hernandez on sax – will accompany the four performers on various pieces throughout the 45-minute virtual show.

“ReelMusic 2021 is all about honoring the universal power of music to lift us up, to heal, to touch our souls and to change lives,” said Dee Dee Dochen, executive producer of ReelMusic and immediate past chair of ReelAbilities Houston 2020. “To borrow the wise words of local keyboardist-composer Andrew Lienhard, our four featured singers and songwriters represent what being a musician is all about: finding a way to channel the music within, no matter what obstacles you may encounter on the way out.”

Benjy Hershorn, 2021 ReelAbilities Houston Chair, said, “The Festival’s long-standing mission is to utilize the power of the arts to bring disability awareness and advocacy into the culture of Houston’s families, institutions, places of work and communities. During this challenging year, the global pandemic has changed everything. As a result, ReelAbilities Houston 2021 is a virtual event.  As a testament to our mission of inclusion, we chose to adapt, using technology to expand access and stay connected to everyone and anyone, anywhere – both in and far beyond Houston.”

Founded in 2007 in New York and now presented in 17 cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, ReelAbilities in Houston is made possible by city host, The JFS Alexander Institute for Inclusion, and is produced in collaboration with the Houston Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities. TIRR Memorial Hermann, the Festival’s founding partner; Cornerstone Home Lending Inc.; and Joan and Stanford Alexander are lead sponsors. Comfort Systems USA and Page are 2021 ReelMusic Production Sponsors.

Click here for bios of all ReelMusic featured performers and the ReelMusic house band.

More About ReelAbilities Houston

Chaired by Benjy Hershorn, co-chaired by Eve Lapin and Marcy Margolis, and 100% virtual, the core ReelAbilities Houston 2021 Festival will take place Feb. 16 – 24, with a preview ReelWorkplace lunchtime panel seminar Feb. 11 hosted by Houston Business Journal and tailored around the topic of disability equity and inclusion. The 2021 ReelAbilities Festival will feature 16 award-winning films, a ReelPeople: UP Abilities speakers event, ReelMusic Concert, virtual art experiences featuring the work of Celebration Company artists, and educational programs in schools and workplaces around Houston. All art, film and music events are free; registration is encouraged. For a full schedule and more information, visit www.ReelAbilitiesHouston.org.