Art is the most direct and visceral way of speaking to people across boarders, and barriers. Art motivates, art empowers, art creates news ways of thinking.
As part of Eve Ensler’s – the Tony Award author of the Vagina Monologues [http://www.eveensler.org] – global campaign One Billion Rising to end the violence against women and girls, musicians, choregraphers, visual artists, poets, writers are rising up on February 14th, 2013.
“One in three women on the planet
will be raped or beaten in her lifetime.
One billion women violated is an atrocity.
One billion women dancing is a revolution.”
India’s Daughter:
Published on Dec 31, 2012
A Spoken Word tribute, and a plea for India’s Daughters. Written, recorded and produced on one sleepless night, Dec 30, 2012.
Written, composed and arranged by Anuj Rastogi.
(c) Copyright Anuj Rastogi (Omnesia Records) 2012
‘Amanat’s Reprise’
Tonight, as I tuck her into her crib for the night
I stare down at her, under the waning moonlight
As on all other such evenings, I kiss her goodnight and wish away any fright
That she may feel while asleep, or awake
With all my might_ I wish I could make it all go away
Every crime, every curse,
Every danger, every hearse
That carries away the bodies of souls departed
Or in tonight’s case, the soul of a country that needs to be restarted
A country, raped by a mother’s own sons, brothers, and fathers
A country that has failed every one of its daughters
Tonight is the first night that I’ve wondered, maybe even wished,
What Mother India could’ve been had her sons instead been drowned in a dish
Had families cursed their misfortune for having a boy
And looked in envy at their neighbors unbridled joy
Celebrating their good fortune for having a daughter;
Perhaps our sons should’ve been lead away to slaughter,
One-by-one before they should plunder, or chance an act of such moral blunder
For centuries Mother India has been MOTHER INDIA,
And like Jocasta, violated by Oedipus every fort night,
Raping his own mother, cloaked in the illusion of non-existent virtue
Dear sons, why am I left feeling I must now curse you?
A land that venerates the Goddess, dresses her scantily and then
Insists she be modest
A land that elevates women to positions of political status
Lies naked and wounded, questioning her chastice
This land rides on her back to procreate and drive economic progress
And then questions her character should she dare to step out in a dress
This land so fertile for its women, lies morally barren of more than a few men who value what is within.
Rape is an act of imposed power
But it is not simply caused when a beast deflowers
It is one spoke, but one extension
Of a social ill that few dare to mention
In our dowries, in our words
We do nothing but seek to curb
The spirit of the truly free woman
WE ARE the problem
Men rape women.
Women rape women.
Mother’s In-Law rape women
Protectors of law rape women.
Politicians rape women.
Film makers rape women.
Ancient Traditions rape women.
Modern police stations rape women.
Silence rapes women.
Speaking out rapes women.
Apathy rapes women.
You and me rape women.
Every minute, of every day
Somewhere in this ancient country,
Be it physical or parliamentary
A woman is raped — her spiritual dignity, once draped
In self-respect has through decades of social neglect
Been left to wither and rot, in plain sight
This is NOT the country of my moral parents
This is not the planet I want for my children
This is NOT the world I want my daughter to grow up in.
And so here I sit, 3000 miles away
Proud to be brown, but ashamed to be a man.
I am a man. A father. A son.
How do I tomorrow face my little one.
And tell her the monsters of the dark were once little boys,
Whose mothers and fathers bred a society armed with penile toys.
And when one woman dared to speak, she was shut down, or drowned in the noise,
Of a society that values its life-giving daughters less than its public poise?
As I lie here, my little girl asleep in her crib.
I am in anguish, she sleeps still, I’m torn right next to her.
When she asks me about India, What will I tell her?
Will it still be my heart’s home, full of history and culture
Or will it be truly overrun by soul-less vultures?
Perhaps this fire that burns,
Sustained and relentless, is what Amanat’s sacrifice has earned
Perhaps tonight is like every other night before it;
And every woman in Delhi will walk in fear from her brothers, the police and the state.
Or perhaps tonight is the night that we turn the tables on fate.
And embrace our shared anger, and our common hate
For the ills of our world, and the suffering of our girls.
Perhaps, tonight is THE night that through Amanat’s plight, WE can awake.
:: Bangarra Dance Theatre: Bangarra’s new production Blak is on Australian national tour in 2013.
Choreographed by Artistic Director Stephen Page and emerging choreographer and company dancer Daniel Riley McKinley, Blak places culture at the heart of our existence. It reaffirms the powerful experiences of rites of passage for young Aboriginal people as they transition to adulthood. By embracing their responsiblities, these young people become a critical link in the songlines that connect our future with our ancient past.
Stay Tuned! We’ve registered to hold a “rising” here in Reno on this global day. Watch:
“Break the Chain” aims to raise awareness around the world about V-Day’s fastest escalating global campaign to date, ONE BILLION RISING. The ONE BILLION RISING campaign began as a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. On 14 February 2013, V-Day’s 15th anniversary, activists, writers, thinkers, celebrities and women and men across the world will come together to express their outrage, strike, dance, and RISE in defiance of the injustices women suffer, demanding an end at last to violence against women.
Produced by Eve Ensler and V-Day, directed by Tony Stroebel, written and produced by Tena Clark with music by Tena Clark and Tim Heintz, and featuring dancer and choreographer Debbie Allen.
“Spirit: A Journey in Dance, Drums, & Song” is a music, dance and percussion spectacle combining contemporary music with the songs, chants and dances of the Native American culture. A fascinating show!
I’ve discovered 7 segments, This is the first dance in the show: “Urban Overture.”
Emir is a Turkish popster who broke through in 2009, “Makina ” (‘Machine’) is the title of the second single taken from his sophomore effort, “Ateşten bi’ rüzgar” (‘Wind on fire’). This track was written by Gavriilidis Vasilis with lyrics by Alper Narman and Onur Özdemir and the video was directed by Erdi Sevinç.
Karsh Kale is widely regarded as a pioneer of global fusion and electronica as his music has inspired and defined the worldwide club phenomenon known as “Asian Massive” or “Asian Underground” in the early part of the decade. Today Karsh’s music has travelled far past the underground club scene and has been featured on stages from Lincoln Center to the Burning Man Festival, and from the Barbican Center to the Hollywood Bowl.
Karsh’s diverse musical talents — whether as a world-class tabla player/drummer, producer, composer, songwriter, remixer or DJ – have led him to working with some of the world’s leading artists such as Pandit Ravi Shankar, Sting, Zakir Hussain, Herbie Hancock, Lenny Kravitz, Anoushka Shankar, Yoko Ono. Bill Laswell, DJ Spooky, Shujaat Khan, Vijay Iyer, Chaka Khan, Paul Oakenfold and many others. Kale has also composed original music for Elizabeth: The Golden age directed by Academy Award winning director Shekhar Kapur.
Cinema is Karsh’s most ambitious album to date. Despite the myriad of influences pulsating through him during the two years it took to produce Cinema, many of the compositions were written on an acoustic guitar or piano — often while Karsh was either on the road, or in a studio. But as the title “Cinema” suggests, the process of scoring films has had as much impact on this album’s sound as Kale’s usual palette of progressive electro-rock and fusion influences. “Cinema” is the aggregate of these diverse inspirations, experiences and musical expressions within one cohesive vision.
Steven F. Arnold, originally from California, was a multi-media artist, a spiritualist, a gender bender (a person who transgresses gender roles sex). He was the protege of Salvador Dali. the range of his talent is expressed through painting, drawing, photography, rock music, movie posters, makeup, costume design, set design and film. He is best known for his surreal photographic tableaux living in black and white created in his “Studio Zanzibar” in Los Angeles, mounted in an old pretzel factory.
Wow! A very dear friend and colleague has just written and published “Screaming Through the Silence: Memories, Truths and a Hope Towards Understanding.” Can’t tell you how proud I am that she had the courage, fortitude, and passion to find her voice so powerfully and eloquently. I had the extreme pleasure of finding an opportunity to read it while on an out-of-town excursion to attend advocacy training. I was nearly bursting with such pride when I finally put it down, and restrained myself until the following evening to call her and offer my deepest respect and admiration.
Kudos Mary Ann for your eloquence! Your voice is loud and strong. I am so proud of your insight, and your gentle graceful strength in articulating against the rape culture we currently inhabit. It is to work alongside you, and to bear witness to your spiritual growing and absoluteness. Life blessings to you and many thanks for allowing me to share this path with you!
About the Book:
“It happens quickly. I’m not in that house ten minutes before my world stops making sense.” From victim to survivor, Mary Ann Ricciardi pens from a most honest and heartfelt point of view, sharing what she knows to be true about the emotional ruin that trails behind the silence and myths surrounding intimate violence. In Screaming Through the Silence: Memories, Truths and a Hope Toward Understanding, Ricciardi writes with a purpose and desire to end the harmful silence of generations past and present. Presenting the issues simply and logically, Ricciardi’s “gentle rant” comes from years of social observations, her own personal struggle as victim turned survivor and her ongoing work with victims of intimate assault. Included are the voices of intimate assault and abuse survivors who so willingly share their truths in hopes of encouraging better understanding and awareness. “Society cannot understand because victims don’t tell; victims don’t tell because society does not understand.”
About the Author:
Mary Ann has been a Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS) Advocate at the Crisis Call Center since 2005, and has provided over 930 hours of face-to-face advocacy to child and adult victims of sexual assault, their friends and families in the year 2011 alone. She has been recognized by Senator Harry Reid, the Alliance for Victims’ Rights, and the Crisis Call Center as an exceptional advocate because of her tremendous dedication to and compassion for victims. Mary Ann continues to be an integral part of the SASS program not only as valuable member of the advocacy team, but also as a teacher, role model and mentor to advocate trainees.
Mary Ann is well known among her peers and colleagues as an outspoken, passionate activist whose writing and public speeches encourage societal dialogue and reflection on our views of rape. She reveals the long-term emotional and spiritual impacts of sexual assault and explains how our silence contributes to tacit acceptance and perpetuation of intimate violence.
*All proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to various nonprofit shelters and crisis centers.
I am the Left Brain. I am a scientist. A mathematician. I love the familiar. I categorize. I am accurate. Linear. Analytical. Strategic. I am practical. Always in control. A master of words and language. Realistic. I calculate equations and play with numbers. I am order. I am logic.
I know exactly who I am.
I am the Right Brain. I am creativity. A free spirit. I am passion. Yearning. Sensuality. I am the sound of roaring laughter. I am taste. The feeling of sand beneath bare feet. I am movement. Vivid colors. I am the urge to paint on an empty canvas. I am boundless imagination. Art. Poetry. I sense. I feel.
I am everything I wanted to be.
If you have a bit of time I highly recommend this PBS American Masters Documentary highlighting artist/choreographer Bill T Jones through his process in the development of work of art based on Abraham Lincoln. It is so worth it.
Bill T. Jones, the recipient of a prestigious MacArthur “genius” grant and winner of two Tony Awards, has been named “an irreplaceable treasure” by the The Dance Heritage Coalition. Above all, he is a socially conscious choreographer who never shies away from controversy — tackling thorny subjects such as race and politics with elegance and intelligence, artistry and originality.
To have the opportunity to create some kind of light in the world — or some kind of trouble in the world — it’s a very valiant gift and I don’t take it lightly. -Stephen Petronio
Our nascent youth SEEDs
{Self-esteem, Empowerment,
& Education through Dance} Program is now fully underway and has a
Facebook page.
Check it out by clicking the leetle bug above, or check in on our progress over at: http://dadimaseeds.org.
RT @KarlFrisch: You can't make this sh#t up. Well, maybe you can. #Benghazi Bombshell: Email Backing GOP Conspiracy Theory is Fake - http:/… 21 hours ago
:: h/t to 
