So the highlight of my week in Toronto was a workshop with some of the members of RAW, or Raging Asian Women. This group is running 10 years strong and just had their first official concert early this month. I've been fortunate to get to know a few of the members as they've come to workshops in San Jose over the years.
The group has a strong mission of social justice and equality, and they operate as a collective in their organizational structure. Rather than just copying from their website or not doing them justice in a short paragraph, I suggest you visit them HERE.
The workshop was a lot of fun to teach and all the members there were hungry to learn. The environment was casual but still focused; I felt welcome into their space and their process. I had some things prepared but also did a lot based on what I observed at the time. The result was a lot of awareness and information that hopefully will give them a lot of options - it comes down to not only individual discovery but also what the group style dictates.
The dinner afterwards was lively and with interesting conversations that went all over, from social issues to taiko to politics to empowerment back to taiko to music theory and beyond (oh and one about my sideburns too...). I would visit RAW again just to have a really long discussion (although the addition of food is good too)!
I've seen RAW get stronger as a group and stronger as a performing company over the years and can't wait to see where the next decade will lead them. I hope more people get to know them through both their love of the art as well as why the group is so passionate about what they do. I'm definitely a fan!
No comments:
Post a Comment