Category Archives: Music, theater, TV, dance

Artists express their cultural and cultural differences  with the creative forms of music, dance, TV  and theater.

Academic Articles, Authors I-Q, Music, theater, TV, dance

Peace Child: A Creative Response in a Divided World – by C. Melissa Neu

ABSTRACT

In an era marked by increasing social, political, and cultural polarization, intercultural communication practitioners are challenged to move beyond awareness-based approaches toward methods that actively foster dialogue and connection across differences. This article explores the Peace Child model, a youth-centered, theatre-based approach to peace building, as a powerful framework for facilitating dialogic engagement in both global and local contexts. Drawing on its origins during the Cold War and its application in conflict regions around the world, the article examines how Peace Child integrates principles of dialogic theory, experiential learning, and co-creative storytelling to transform encounters with difference into opportunities for mutual understanding. Particular attention is given to the role of embodied, arts-based practices in disrupting entrenched narratives and cultivating generative dialogue. The article also addresses the relevance of this model in responding to contemporary polarization and offers practical strategies for intercultural practitioners seeking to design similar programs. By positioning creative collaboration as a catalyst for transformation, this work highlights the potential for theatre and dialogue to reimagine how individuals and communities engage across divides.

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DL Opinion columns, Music, theater, TV, dance

‘Gimme a Break’ and get along with Music –  by Deborah Levine

originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Can we bring diverse folks together in these crazy times? It seems like an impossible dream, one that requires an incredible amount of research, work, time and energy. Yes, I did create a neuroscience-based process years ago called the Matrix Model Management System. And it’s a been a great success for team building. But something simpler and faster is needed these days. What might that be?

I discovered an amazing answer to that question when grocery shopping. I was standing by the candy section, not far from two salesmen whom I’d seen there often. They were discussing sales issues when I realized that I was in front of the KitKat section. I turned to them and asked if they knew the song to the Kit Kat commercial. They grinned like twins although one was African American, the other was country-style White. Together they started to sing and dance to the “Gimme a Break” music from the 1986 KitKat ad. And I joined in. 

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About Deborah Levine, Liberator Series, Music, theater, TV, dance, World War II Documentary

TV Pilot Script: The Liberator’s Daughter

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The Liberator's Daughter LOGLINE

A World War II Liberator’s daughter honors his legacy by battling disabilities, discrimination, and hate in her journey from being disabled and homeless, to repairing our broken world.
6-part TV Series


32+  FILM FESTIVAL  AWARDS
The Liberator’s Daughter has 32 WINNER AWARDS at international film festivals including:
1) WRPN Women’s International Film Festival, 2) Hollywood Blvd Film Festival, 3) Cineplay International, 4) Dallas Shorts, 5) Indiefare International, 6) Airflix Film, 7) Multi Dimension International, 8) Bright International, 9) EdiPlay International, 10) Magic Silver Screen Festival, 11) Medusa Film Festival, 12) Movie Play International, 13) Red Moon Film Festival, 14) Krimson Horyzon International Film Festival, 15) Cult Movies Festival, 16) Crown International, 17) Swedish International, 18) NYC International Film Festival, 19) London New Wave Cinema Awards, 20 & 21) Indie Cine Tube Awards, 22) 4th Dimension Independent film Festival, 23) Cooper Awards, 24) Tokyo Shorts, 25) 8 & Halfilm Awards, 26) New York Neorealism  Film Awards, 27) Golden Giraffe International film Festival, 28) Liber Films International film Festival, 28) Cooper Awards, 29) ASAA Abdolrahman Sarraei Academic Awards, 30) Sofia International Film Festival, 31) Your Way International film Festival, 32) Alpine IFF.

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Music, theater, TV, dance

Diversity of Film and TV Staff Still Lagging – by Rose Joneson

Behind the Scenes

In the film and TV industries, the lack of diversity is a crisis that stretches back decades and remains largely unresolved despite increasing demands for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). It is a multilayered issue that occurs both in front of the camera and behind it. Be that as it may, discussions on the two are disproportionate, with diversity in casting a more prevalent and publicized matter than the latter. Public awareness and criticism spell the difference, as they often spark movements like #OscarsSoWhite that push the industry to take visible strides.

The same cannot be said for diversity in production crews, where gender and racial gaps continue to persist. UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report reveals that women and people of color (POC) remain vastly underrepresented behind the scenes, taking up less than a third of key roles. While this is already an improvement from a few years ago, much can still be done to improve diversity among crew members.

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Advisors, Authors A-H, Music, theater, TV, dance

Diversity and Speech No. 35: Rockin’ Diversity – by Carlos E. Cortés and Teri Gerent

Carlos:  Tell me, Teri.  How did you come up with the idea of teaching history through rock and roll music?

Teri: I’ve always loved music.  From the time I became a history teacher in 1998, I thought of music whenever we reached the twentieth century.  Then it hit me.  Why not help students reconsider U.S. history by structuring a course around music?  It worked.  

Carlos:  Well, if music works for teaching high school students, why not for diversity workshops, too?    

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Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Neuro-diversity

Music and NeuroCommunication: Part 2 – by Deborah Levine

Neuro Communication with James Brown

My musical neurocommunication with Ravi Shankar ended with his deep bow. The burst of applause was startling after the stillness, as was the quick dash of movement to the bathrooms. I turned to Cousin Sam, thanked him, and started to put on my coat. Sam didn’t move, ”We should stay for the next act.” I whined at that, “I’m tired and it’s a long schlep back to campus on the bus.” “Trust me. We should stay,” he said softly, but firmly. And so, mildly kvetching (complaining in Yiddish), I was still seated when the curtain re-opened.

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Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Neuro-diversity

Music and Neurocommunication: Part 1 – by Deborah Levine

Neurocommunication with Ravi Shankar

My cousin Sam and I escaped our Harvard dorms and were about to experience neurocommunication as we headed out to a Ravi Shankar concert in a small neighborhood theater in Boston. I was just seventeen, you know what I mean, and it was frostbite territory standing at the bus stop in Cambridge, Mass. Freezing almost took my mind off of being homesick for my family back in New York. Overcome with loneliness, I needed an attitude adjustment and Sam insisted on some music therapy. He thought that classical sitar music from India would distract and soothe  – reboot my brain.  I wondered why we were the only Harvard students who ‘d come to hear this relatively unknown musician from India. But it was the sixties and Shankar hadn’t yet been labeled by The Beatles’ George Harrison as “the godfather of world music”.

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Arts & Culture Podcasts, Music, theater, TV, dance

Carol Potter: From Screen & Stage to Therapist

Carol Potter: From Screen & Stage to Therapist With a screen & stage career spanning over 40 years,  therapist Carol Potter is best known for her role as Cindy Walsh in Aaron Spelling’s Beverly Hills 90210, among many other Hollywood credits.  She has also been seen on stages in New York, including the original Broadway production of Gemini, Los Angeles, and regional theater.

A Harvard graduate, she became a Licensed Marriage and Family therapist in 2001.

Click to hear Carol’s podcast

Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Of Women, Race & Ethnicity

Interview with Kim Wayans: Comedian & Advocate – by Deborah Levine

Kim is a key member of the Wayans clan that created TV’s In Living Color. The ten Wayans siblings grew up poor in New York City’s Chelsea neighborhood. Elvira, Kim’s mother, was a homemaker and social worker who took the kids everywhere, no nannies, and no babysitter. Their father was a supermarket manager and the Jehovah’s Witness in the family. With no background in the entertainment business and little money, the Wayans’ success is an unlikely story.

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Artists, Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Race & Ethnicity

How Pow Wow Leaders Inspired – by Deborah Levine

SpiritBearWhen regional Native Americans convene in Chattanooga’s First Tennessee Pavilion, you’ll find me there, too. This year, the gathering seemed larger and more energetic than ever. I come to admire the colorful dress, hear the drum circle, and watch the dancing. The booths full of Native American arts and crafts are irresistible and my drawers are full of jewelry purchased there. I also come for the honor guard, a promenade of Native American veterans, police, firemen, and war mothers.

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