There are no velvet curtains or fancy lighting here. The audience is more likely to wear jeans or sweat pants than tuxedos or evening dresses. Yet, for dancer and choreographer Ofelia Loret de Mola, the lobby of Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center in Brooklyn is one of the best stages in the world.
When Loret de Mola and her husband dance at Woodhull, the couple’s performances do a lot more than ensures miles on spectators’ faces, they’re banking credits toward an innovative health care program called Artist Access. Launched as a pilot initiative in 2005, Artist Access is now a firmly entrenched program that gives New York City artists — from dancers to painters to actors and beyond — an entrée into the world of preventive (and affordable) health care.