Dancing to Connect
Dancing to Connect “American public diplomacy at its finest” –The Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Program Dancing to Connect (DtC), an awardwinning initiative created by Battery Dance Company of New York City, engages youth in creativity and team-building through the art form of modern dance. Students of all abilities work under the guidance of Battery Dance Company’s teaching artists, who are also world-class performers, creating and performing choreography of their own devising. DtC workshops open doors for teens as they transition into the leaders and engaged citizens of tomorrow. The Mission The term Dancing to Connect was coined to refer to the leitmotif of the project, which makes connections between: • Communities in conflict • Students of diverse economic brackets • Boys and girls • Student mentors with younger students • Natives and immigrants • Secondary schools of all types • Spheres of education and culture • Professional dancers and high school students • Cultures and languages of the host country and the U.S. Expertise Battery Dance Company’s extensive overseas experience has equipped it with three significant assets: (1) Broad experience in cultural diplomacy and cross-cultural communication; The Approach Dance takes the thinking and creative processes into a physical space, providing students with a non-verbal means of expression. Through an intensive weeklong series of five-hour workshops, students find in dance a new and different way to realize themselves, in stark contrast to the dominant verbal mode normally employed in the classroom. Oftentimes the student who has failed to excel or has even checked out of the academic process altogether, finds a way back in through DtC. (2) Programming methodology specifically designed to connect with foreign cultures and communities; (3) A network of contacts within foreign government agencies, NGOs as well as the State Department’s Regional Bureaus, Embassies and Posts. Thus, more than most other American performing arts organizations, Battery Dance Company is uniquely positioned to help nurture and promote international cultural engagement worldwide. “The new face of cultural diplomacy” –The New York Times Dancing to Connect Countries The Dancing to Connect program has been implemented in 42 countries throughout the world since 2006. Battery Dance Company plans on expanding to 50 countries by 2015. Algeria China Georgia Greece Indonesia Japan Lesotho Malta Nigeria Russia Spain Taiwan Trinidad/Tobago United States Brazil DRC Germany Guinea Iraq Kenya Macedonia Morocco Palestinian Territories Singapore Suriname Tanzania Uganda Uruguay Cambodia France Ghana India Israel Laos Malaysia Namibia Romania South Africa Swaziland Thailand U.K. Zambia 380 Broadway, 5th Floor New York, NY 10013 Phone: (212) 219-3910 Fax: (212) 219-3911 battery@batterydance.org www.batterydance.org
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