Dialogue in 3 Movements:An Interfaith Artistic Journey
in partnership with PRISM and the Chirstian Association at Penn with

Featured performers countries of origin (or cultural heritage) include the US, Iran, Israel, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Syria and Venezuela.

ARTolerance strives to create common ground between peoples of different cultural, social, and religious backgrounds using the tools used in collaborative artistic performances. Creating harmony and dissonance and exploring musical modes of different cultures through improvisation require mindfulness and compassionate listening, qualities that are essential to creating dialogue. Through Dialogue in Three Movements, we aspire to give a voice to all individuals, particularly those who have historically been oppressed, and inspire everyone to find common ground with others to create a peaceful future for our society.

This event will begin with solo introductions. Each artist will present a solo act that expresses their identity, whether it be cultural, religious, political, artistic or social. From there, artists will find common ground through improvisation, which requires active listening and creativity. As an example, a painter may take the percussive qualities of accented notes heard in the music and change his brush strokes to match the angular and abrupt qualities. A dancer may take the curves she hears in the melodic line to mimic the curves through her movements. In the final movement, the artists will present a collaborative piece that exhibits all of their individual identities yet is cohesive and unified. Each artist’s identity is maintained while coexisting with the others to create a beautiful tapestry of culture, religion and genre.

The performance will serve as a metaphor and inspiration for dialogue that promotes peace and understanding. Afterwards, there will be small breakout sessions for performers and attendees to engage in dialogue.

Questions? Contact upennca@gmail.com