Opening Night

Flutes at Dawn is a 501c3 nonprofit serving youth, families, and communities through music, dance, and digital media. Founded by wife-and-husband duo Karlies Kelley and Kiran Vedula in 2021, the organization aims to uplift underserved and marginalized people and art forms by fostering cross-cultural understanding through high-quality arts experiences, education, and support. On stage, in the studio, and in the classroom, Karlies and Kiran create engaging, welcoming spaces where people learn about themselves and connect with others through the creative process. Their work honors indigenous/ancestral teachings from a variety of global traditions, including their own (Panama and India, respectively), while using Hip Hop culture and technology to apply those teachings in a post-modern, post-COVID, virtual world.

Through their work individually and together over the past two decades, Kiran and Karlies have built an extensive network of artists, educators, community leaders, and families in southeastern Wisconsin, nationally, and abroad. This artist…