The Name

Back in 2010, I was hunting for music for a modern piece that my Ballet II could use to practice connecting expression and storytelling with movement, and I happened upon an old recording of The Standards singing “Prayer of the Children” by Kurt Bestor.  I was moved by the very first notes of the song, and by the end it had me in tears.  It told the story of the children who lived and died during the violent conflicts in Croatia in the 1990’s.  “Can you hear the prayer of the children, on bended knee in the shadow of an unknown room. Empty eyes, with no more tears to cry – turning heavenward, toward the light.”

We met ourselves creating movement to the first few verses of this song, and ever since then I’ve been looking for the story that could inspire me to finish the piece!  I never considered at the time, that the story I needed so much was my own.  I now know the pain of loosing a child, have fought desperately for the health of our two living children, and spent time with orphaned, displaced and adopted children around the world.   Usvojenik is Croatian for “Adopted Child” and this body of work tells my own story, and the stories of countless children around the world who are longing for home.  Some have known the joy of being both lost and found again, but many have not.   This piece is for all of us.  This piece is for you.

– Rachel Lee Davis, Choreographer, Director

Giving

All proceeds from exhibitions, performances, and fundraisers will be given to the Kazoos 4 Kids program and the Swing Kids program to be disbursed to minority groups, refugees, special needs, and immigrant communities in need!  Each of these programs supplies a unique gift for children and organizations both in the United States and internationally, who serve the communities we have named.