By Jill Colvin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
BROOKLYN — The city's struggling public hospital system is hoping a week-long arts and music festival will provide a much-needed shot in the arm of cash before the holiday season.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Health and Hospitals Corporation President Alan Aviles announced the launch of STAT! For New York City’s Public Hospitals, a new arts and music festival featuring multicultural performances and jazz, Latin and gospel music events across the city.
The proceeds will be used to buy new medical equipment and upgrade technology at the hospitals, which have been struggling to cope with cutbacks and rising costs, as well as the recent closure of Greenwich Village's St. Vincent's Hospital last spring.
"In a hospital when someone shouts, 'Stat!,' it means situation urgent. And an urgent situation is just what our hospitals face," Bloomberg said.
The week will kick-off with a VIP party at Bellevue Hospital on Dec. 7, with performances by artists including tap dancer Omar Edwards, who starred in "Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk."
On Dec. 11, the festival will move to Harlem for an evening of jazz and gospel music at the Mother A.M.E. Zion Church, with clarinetist Don Byron and singer/songwriter Garland Jeffreys, who was on hand to serenade the crowd at a press conference making the last-minute announcement at Brooklyn's Kings County Hospital.
Edwards, who spoke with his smiling daughter, "Billy Elliot" star Ebony, 9, by his side, stressed public hospitals as a crucial safety net for artists in the city.
"Come out and help us because we're here for you," he urged.
Aviles said that because this is a first-time event, he's unsure how much the week will raise. But because most of the venues and performers are donating their space and time for free, all of the proceeds from ticket sales, which range from $15 to $55 will go to hospital funding.
A full calendar of events can be found here.
