Project Resonance
Collaboration between African and Asian American artists to jointly create/present a new dance drama - Resonance.
Project Resonance orchestrates new creations of music and dances to serve as a communication bridge across cultural/racial lines, to mitigate racial tensions between African and Asian communities, to illustrate the cross-cultural experience, and eventually promote Intercultural Harmony.
Resonance inspires inner/outer connections to create sustainable impacts.
2022-2023 Cultural Heritage and Community Identity Grants - Winter 2021
We see stereotypes gloss over cultural and economic realities of our country and dehumanize Asian/Black experiences. Project Resonance intends to use Arts that familiar by Asian American (Guzheng Music/Asian Dance), and integrate with Arts that familiar by Blacks (Rap/Hip Hop Dance), to attract both communities, and discuss the difficult subject - the Animosity between the 2 groups, and how that worsen the pandemic impacts on each others. Our Project will recruit 6 Artists to create 5 Guzheng music/5-8 dances, engage 40 community members to share cross-cultural stories to inspire the Artistic Team to create the Dance Drama Resonance,and work with 20 youth of color to stage the Final Show and travelling shows, and reach 2,000 audiences.
We will:
- Track and report on the number and types of materials/assets created and shared;
- Develop progress reports on basic activity metrics; and
- Report on an estimated number of people reached and success stories.
Success will be measured through Process & Outcome Evaluation. We will evaluate PROCESS success through # of attendance, quality of dialogues during the creation process, the level of youth's participation and relevance of the project to them, its effects on the artists, and cultural communities (such as increasing # of cross-cultural collaborations, etc.), as well as below matrix indicators:
- # and types of audiences, events/performances held;
- # and types of ways a creative output is viewed or seen (e.g., live performances, streaming hits,etc.); and
- # and type of ways creative work is promoted (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.).
The OUTCOME Evaluation will focus on behavioral changes among participants, such as increasing understanding of others, measured by:
- Change in cultural knowledge by target audience;
- Change in artist confidence to engage public in conversations about getting along with one and another;
- Change in participant knowledge and confidence level through cross-cultural communication;
- # and types of ways community feedback is sought; and
- Audience Survey: # and degree to which people's behaviors changed and Increased awareness of the importance of intercultural harmony.
PROPOSED OUTCOMES: Collaborating between African & Asian American (Am) artists to jointly create/present a new dance drama - Resonance,with Composer/Lead Musician Jarrelle Barton (African Am), Choreographer/Xuefeng Lee (Hmong Am). Project Resonance orchestrates new creations of music and dances to serve as a communication bridge across cultural/racial lines, to mitigate racial tensions between African and Asian communities, to illustrate the cross-cultural experience, and eventually promote Intercultural Harmony. Resonance inspires inner/outer connections to create sustainable impacts.
A. PROPOSED GOALS:
#1: Successfully address challenges of working together, cross cultural lines among the Asian-African Am Artistic Team through project planning and implementation of the Dance Drama Resonance.
#2: Successfully promote deeper, richer artistic and cross-cultural experience for Asian youth through joint-training and the Dance Drama Resonance.
#3: Successfully overcome cultural barriers and change Asian and African Am Communities' perceptions toward each other beyond stereotyping through storytelling get-togethers and the Dance Drama Resonance,throughout MN.
B. PRPOSED ACTIVITIES:
1) Hosting at least 2 Story-telling Get Together events for Asian and African American elders, professionals and youth;
2) Jointly creating the Dance Drama Resonanceby Asian and African Am artists, with at least 3 new original Guzheng music to accompanying 3 newly choreographed fusion dances that are inspired by the Get Together stories;
3) Training Asian youth as talents and technical crew for the Dance Drama Resonance;and
4) Public staging/touring of the newly created Dance Drama Resonance
C. ACCOMPLISHMENTS SO FAR:
* Completed the Story-telling Get Together event for Asian and African American elders, professionals and youth
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* Completed incorporating those stories into newly created 5 Guzheng Music scores by African American musician Jarrelle Barton
* #1 Opening - Resonance - peaceful and hearing COVID-19 (paying not much attention) - https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1z7ExeII5Av7zBbI1MpWZek4qolJ…
* #2 - Disaster - getting serious, angry, frustration
* #3 - Breathe - people learn to adapt https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1z7ExeII5Av7zBbI1MpWZek4qolJ…
* #4 - Dance Phoenix - COVID-19 cases up and down - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uOrakbar7fEfg0i_bp9dYQOhxe3jgEEW/view
* #5 - Ode to a Wish - end with HOPE -https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1z7ExeII5Av7zBbI1MpWZek4qolJ…
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* Completed incorporated the newly created music into the dance drama - Project Resonance
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* Completed the costume designs and finalizing/rehearsing the new dance choreographies with youth; I. Proposed Measurable Outcomes: Collaborating between African and Asian American artists to jointly create/present a new dance drama - Resonance,with Composer/Lead Musician Jarrelle Barton (African American), Choreographer/Xuefeng Lee (Hmong American). Project Resonance orchestrates new creations of music and dances to serve as a communication bridge across cultural/racial lines, to mitigate racial tensions between African and Asian communities, to illustrate the cross-cultural experience, and eventually promote Intercultural Harmony. Resonance inspires inner/outer connections to create sustainable impacts.
A. NEEDS. An increasing number of people of Asian heritages in Minnesota, and more broadly, in many other parts of the U.S. have reported experiencing racism over the past few years as COVID-19 virus spread across the world. Because COVID-19 was unknown to the public until the outbreak in Wuhan, China, some Americans feel justified in spreading xenophobic messages that blames Asian-identifying people for this deadly virus. The anti-Asian racism we face is only escalating, as national leadership continues to use the term like China Virus,such xenophobic language against Asians. Racist actions ranging from using xenophobic and racial slurs, to refusing customer service, to outright physical attacks have also increased. To combat the racial hatred, Artists from Pan Asian Arts Alliance come together to create a new Dance Drama - Project Resonancethat showcases the cross-cultural beauties. Project Resonanceis a collaboration between African American and Asian American artists to jointly create diverse music and dance pieces to reflect COVID-19 impacts on the BIPOC communities, and to organize the "Resonance" dance drama, to support cross-cultural understanding and appreciation, in order to mitigate the pandemic conflicts and support intercultural harmony.
B. PROPOSED GOALS:
#1: Successfully address challenges of working together, cross cultural lines among the Asian-African Am Artistic Team through project planning and implementation of the Dance Drama Resonance.-> FINAL RESULT: Completed
#2: Successfully promote deeper, richer artistic and cross-cultural experience for Asian youth through joint-training and the Dance Drama Resonance.-> FINAL RESULT: Completed
#3: Successfully overcome cultural barriers and change Asian and African Am Communities' perceptions toward each other beyond stereotyping through storytelling get-togethers and the Dance Drama Resonance,throughout MN. -> FINAL RESULT: Completed
C. PRPOSED ACTIVITIES:
1) Hosting at least 2 Story-telling Get Together events for Asian and African American elders, professionals and youth -> FINAL RESULT: Completed
2) Jointly creating the Dance Drama Resonanceby Asian and African American artists, with at least 3 new original Guzheng music to accompanying 3 newly choreographed fusion dances that are inspired by the Get Together stories -> FINAL RESULT: 3 original Guzheng music, and 15 new dances, see below session for details
3) Training BIPOC youth as talents and technical crew for the Dance Drama Resonance-> FINAL RESULT: Completed
4) Public staging/touring of the newly created Dance Drama Resonance-> FINAL RESULT: Completed 6 performances, see below session for details. II. Outcomes of Grant: After the Story-sharing and cultural exchange process, the Artistic Team has decided to create a Dance Drama that reflecting the pandemic impacts on BIPOC communities. In order to combat the racial hatred, Artists from Asian Media Access and Pan Asian Arts Alliance come together to create a new Dance Drama - Project Resonancethat showcases the cross-cultural beauties, and how BIPOCs supporting each other and surviving the pandemic together with cultural resiliency.
Project Resonanceis a collaboration between African American and Asian American artists to jointly create diverse music and dance pieces to reflect COVID-19 impacts on the BIPOC communities, and to organize the Resonancedance drama, to support cross-cultural understanding and appreciation, in order to mitigate the pandemic conflicts and support intercultural harmony.
Our artistic team has included:
* Producer/Director: Ange Hwang
* Lighting and Technical Director: Stephen J. Lu
* Composer and Guzheng Musician: Jarrelle Barton
* Choreographer/Project Lead: XueFeng Lee
* Costume Designer: Andreanna Yang
* Talents: Unity Dance Company with the Lead Dancers - Anna Thao and Sean Thao
The Dance Drama Project Resonancehas previewed at the 2022 May Songkran Festival at the State Capital, and debuted the whole show on July 11th, at the prestigious Grand Rapids' REIF Performing Arts Center. As a journey going through the Pandemic, the composer Jarrelle Barton has composed new music, to highlight the pandemic impacts on families, and incorporated 3 new Guzheng music in reflecting the composer's experience with COVID: from just learning about COVID, not paying much attention, to realizing the disaster it created; to feeling angry and frustration; then learning to adapt, and end with appreciation and hope for all of us.
Then the Choreographer XueFeng Lee has taken the music and choreographed multiple dances to thread a dance drama together, to better reflect different stage of struggles among BIPOCs, and end with a positive note - as a unified message - wearing the mask to protect yourself and protect the community. Not only was the music were beautifully played, and the 22 dancers' ensemble from the Unity Dance Company clearly illustrated how pandemic progressed as virus evolved, along with sacrifices of many, to where we are now - a new normal.
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1) Jin Chen (Chinese American Chamber of Commerce - MN)
2) Catlynn Dang (Youth Representative);
3) Jijun He (Freelance Photographer);
4) Ange Hwang (Executive Director of Asian Media Access), Board Chair
5) Ying Li (Program Director of Pan Asian Arts Alliance and Artistic Director of Phoenix Dance);
6) Steve aka "Mr Fun" (Executive Director of Funtime Funktions);
7) Korawan Muangmode (Yin) (General Manager at Amazing Thailand Uptown Bar & Restaurant);
8) Tin Tran (Artistic Director of ENRG Dance Team);
9) Mintshis Vang (Artistic Director of Vang Performing Arts Group and Project Director of PAAA); and
10) Eric Voung (Artistic Director of Vietnamese Lion Dance Team) ; Catlynn Dang (Youth Representative); Arrly Her (Dance Teacher for Vang Performing Arts Group); Ange Hwang (Executive Director of Asian Media Access), Board Chair; Steve aka "Mr Fun" (Executive Director of Funtime Funktions); Korawan Muangmode (Yin) (General Manager at Amazing Thailand Uptown Bar & Restaurant); Tin Tran (Artistic Director of ENRG Dance Team), Board Secretary; Eric Voung (Artistic Director of Vietnamese Lion Dance Team); Dr. Dao Yang (Director of Laotian Senior Dance Group); and Aeola Lu (Project Coordinator of Pan Asian Arts Alliance).