When, on February 14, about 2,000 people participated in a dance flash mob in Florence’s piazza della Repubblica, they were taking part in the biggest mass global action to end violence against women and girls in the history of humankind. The event was part of a larger initiative of the One Billion Rising campaign (www.onebillionrising.org), which organized dance flash mobs in major cities around the world.
The Florence dance flash mob raised money for the Florence-based women’s crisis centre Artemisia, and was hosted by the Global Theatre Project, an American nonprofit that grew out of the Florence International Theatre Company and organizes cross-cultural events and productions, in collaboration with others. ‘I am pleased from the perspective that the event had a huge turnout,’ said Bari Hochwald, artistic director of the Global Theatre Project.
Among the attendees were U.S. Consul in Florence Sarah Morrison, Equal Opportunities Councilor Cristina Giachi, Education Councilor for the City of Florence Rosa Maria Di Giorgi and Florentine actress Angela Finocchiaro.
The event required an enormous amount of preparation, including choreographing and rehearsing the dance, and engaging students from American universities in Florence and other local organizations. ‘If the discussion turns to action, if more such events and activities allow for real education and change, then I will be satisfied regardless of the technical and community engagement challenges we encountered,’ Hochwald said.
Although the dance flash mob event has passed, the opportunities to support the cause continue. The next event focused on ending violence to women is the Vagina Monologues event in Florence on March 8 and 9 (see page 16). The Global Theatre Project has pledged to hold annual V-day events connecting U.S. students to residents of the city on the subject of violence against women; for more information, see http://theglobaltheatreproject.org and www.vday.org.
To add your own pledge to work towards ending violence to women, visit http://tinyurl.com/albub62, or go to http://tinyurl.com/ac6yo5h to contribute to Artemisia.
