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Read here about the Northampton group: Now in its sixth year, Grrrls Speak is going strong. Ranging in age
from 11 to 14, the girls meet every Monday afternoon to tell the stories
of their days and spin words and movements into tangible, subtle art.
Partially funded for three consecutive years by the Art Angels, they've Previous groups have performed in senior centers, elementary schools at the Hampshire County Youth Conference, at Earthdance Workshop and Retreat Center and at the Academy of Music in Northampton. The group has published 4 volumes of original poetry and taken weekend dance/write/play retreats at Earthdance in Plainfield. "When we get together we write and we dance," writes Johanna Walker, who leads the weekly workshops, "We tell each other our stories and sometimes our secrets. We remind each other how smart we are. We try out new ideas. Sometimes they fail, so we try something else. We collaborate. We improvise. We change course midstream...We laugh a lot."
Johanna Walker has been working in schools and community settings for over 15 years. She makes solo and group performance works that incorporate words and movement. She is trained by Amherst Writers and Artists Institute and dances with the Dance Generators, an intergenerational dance company in Northampton. She loves working with grrrls of all ages and is endlessly amazed by the poems they make and the dances they do. For more information on Johanna, please visit her website.
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Copyright © 2004 Johanna Walker. All Rights Reserved. |
produced
standing room only performances that have blossomed into a highlight
of the annual performance cycle in the Pioneer Valley. Audiences have
cheered, wept, mused, and returned again and again to experience the
girls' blast of clarity and truth. The sometimes brilliant, sometimes
quirky show of poetry with improvised and choreographed movement has
earned a wildly loyal fan base far beyond the polite obligations of
parents and friends.