LIGHT / THE HOLOCAUST & HUMANITY PROJECT is a full-length contemporary ballet and Holocaust education partnership that promotes the protection of human rights against bigotry and hate through arts, education, and public dialogue.
The original project was premiered by Ballet Austin in Austin, Texas in 2005, which was replicated in Pittsburgh in 2009 with 21 unique community-based and educational initiatives. LIGHT returned to Austin in 2012 from Martin Luther King Jr. Day through Yom HaShoah or Holocaust Remembrance Day, with events and initiatives led by nearly 50 community partners. In 2013, Ballet Austin brought LIGHT to three cities in Israel: Acco, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.
LIGHT challenges communities to work collaboratively to consider the “difficult knowledge” presented by the Holocaust. Citizens are asked to hold themselves and each other accountable for any act of disregard for human rights and to learn by studying the ethical, historical and representation issues of the Holocaust through public lectures, a production by Ballet Austin, screenings of FINDING LIGHT, as well as in-service training for teachers and other public conversations. In closing, citizens are encouraged to consider how the study of the Holocaust might foster dialogue regarding contemporary issues of genocide, bigotry, and hate.
