Events

On Sunday, May 31 at 9am and 12 noon EDT, Hollander's Dance Diplomacy interview reassembles a trio of women who succeeded in bringing Battery Dance's "Dancing to Connect" program to Iraq in 2012 against a backdrop of bombs attacks and institutional skepticism. Sue Harville served as the Public Affairs Officer for the U.S. Department of State in Kirkuk, Erbil, where explosions served as her morning wake-up call.  Local Cultural Advisor Helen Pattou facilitated the project, translating into two languages for youthful participants from different religious and linguistic groups and negotiating for space when everything went awry at the last moment.  Robin Cantrell overcame her trepidation and dug into her skills as a dancer and teaching artist with Battery Dance, converting theater students into confident choreographers and dancers in the matter of 5 days.