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Thursday July 25, 7pm
Burton Chace Park in Marina Del Rey A festival of dance and music featuring two original ballets: An American in Paris and Sirens The Marina Del Rey Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Frank Fetta Click Here for more information There used to be a trailer for the Deadwood movie here, but for some reason it no longer works, so I took it down, but I was very excited to tease you all about the movie, which I dance in. That is all.
LOVE this festival and am so excited to return as a director once again! This year: Amy Dellagiarino's Inhale/Exhale. A really beautiful mediation on moving through hard times and heartbreak that is both funny and irreverent. Starring Krista Conti and Aedryun Wulf. I'm so proud of their work. Friday March 29th at 5pm and Sunday March 31 at 11am. Click here for ticket info!
So honored and inspired by the amazing Marsha Hunt. Read my newest article on Female Fusion Here
The last six months of my life have been consumed with this amazing project. What began as a simple dance film to raise awareness has evolved into a truly amazing project. Too Many Bodies, Place Called Us is a music video that leads to action, laid out in a website with resources for victims, loved ones, family members and activists. We have national and state resources for victims' support, compensation, voter registration and voter education. Additionally, I am creating, in associate with Nurjahan Boulden of Shooting Survivor and The Art Of Elysium, a series of individualized workshops to create safety, healing and societal change through art. Never has a project so aligned with my mission statement as an artist. The video has, as of today, been accepted into four festivals, including the prestigious San Francisco Dance Film Festival, where it will screen as part of the Raising Voices program on October 14. I will be at the screening and will speak on the panel following the films. San Francisco Film Society is hosting a panel discussion on October 9th featuring artist/reporter Dana King, choreographer Krissy Keefer, Public Defender Jeff Adachi and our director Reena Dutt. Email me if you are interested in attending that event. In Los Angeles the same week, it will screen at the South Asian Film Festival at Universal Studios. So far we have also been accepted into the Twin Falls Film Festival and The Grove Film Festival. We are spreading it far and wide and hope to add many many screenings to the list!
We are launching the video and website to the world on September 26 in Los Angeles with a press screening of the video, a sizzle reel from our pilot workshop collaboration and with an artists' panel. This event will be live streamed on Facebook and we invite you to join us! Joanne Divito will moderate the panel discussion between Nurjahan Boulden and Actor/Activist Alyssa Milano, the founder of NoRA and a fierce advocate for social change. We have one more surprise panelist! NoRA is sponsoring the video and the launch event is sponsored by Art of Elysium, NoRA and eTech. We are so grateful for their support and inspired by all of the work that they do. So, I don't spend a lot of time talking or writing about how I feel about sustainability, climate change, and our stewardship of the earth. Living with a small carbon footprint is something that I take into account with everything that I do, but up until now have been mostly quiet about. That is about to change. I just took part in the Climate Reality Leadership Conference here in Los Angeles. Al Gore is a charismatic and astonishing person. There was a bevy of brilliant scientists, passionate journalists and the 2200 participants themselves, a gathering of so many wonderful people. I am both incredibly dismayed by the mess that we are in and buoyed up by the passion, intelligence and power in the room. The message is two fold: the situation is dire AND we have tools to combat it. Every global crisis starts locally so this, my first posting on the subject, will share three important ways that I am personally dealing with climate change. These are the choices that I make each and every day. It is hard for an inherently shy person to say, "this is what I do, you should try it too." I usually joke and say something about being a Northern California hippie at heart. This is true, but not the whole story. Time to own it. These are choices that I make and I would encourage you to try one or two, you might actually like it. 1. Plant based diet: I know, another self righteous vegan telling others how to eat. Even Mr. Gore said that he doesn't try to change people's diets though he too is vegetarian. The facts are these: industrial agriculture is a huge source of climate change. If more people abstained from that way of life, we would be in a better place. So, I would encourage you to take it a day at a time. Eat less meat, avoid dairy for a meal, a day, a week. See how you feel. See how much money you save. Eat real, whole foods, not meat or cheese substitutes. Try world cuisines that don't rely on animal products and see how delicious it is. Make different choices and treat it all as an adventure. You might discover a whole new you. Corny sounding, but true. 2. Transportation: As most of my friends know, I don't have a car. I bike everywhere, and I mean everywhere. I average 30 miles a day and often hit 50 or 60. Considering that my job is dancing and I am literally on my feet all day long, this is a serious commitment. I admit that it is also a little crazy. I don't think that everyone needs to make this commitment, but everyone does have room to lessen the amount of time spent in a single occupancy car. Carpool, take the train or a bus, ride a bike or scooter part of the way and take the train the rest. Even in notoriously poorly served Los Angeles, you can get to many many places easily and quickly via public transportation. If you do you have a car, keep it in good condition and move towards a hybrid or electric vehicle. 3. Shopping. We are such a consumer based society and we create so much waste. I gave up buying new things several years ago. This includes clothing and shoes (with a few notable exceptions: underwear, running and dance shoes, most workout clothes), kitchen items, furniture and accessories. It does not include electronics (computers, phones, etc) or bedroom and bathroom supplies for sanitary reasons. In addition to WHAT I buy, I am conscious of how I transport it. I always carry my own bags, avoid extra bags for fruit at the store, carry a coffee and water bottle at all times and shop for food often to avoid throwing things away. Below is a graphic that we can all use as a guide. Take or leave what works for you! And thanks for taking the time to read my first Climate Reality Leadership Blog Post! |
Nancy Dobbs Owen
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