GENESIS is a non-profit organization committed to social engagement & unifying different cultures through dance, creating livelihoods for artists in developing regions of the world, specifically BiH.
Our Mission:
To spread dance & artistic opportunities throughout the world.
Purpose: To empower young artists & unify different cultures & religions through dance & arts education.
Emerge through action…
Create change and new realities…
Unify cultures for a common purpose…
Dance and arts education to express and understand the world.
gen e sis (jen’ i-sis)
n. pl. gen e ses (-seez)
1. The coming into being of something; the origin.
As with almost anything in life dance begins with an origin, an idea, an inspiration, sometimes one move and continues to grow into something else…a creation. This process never stops…it’s constantly in motion, constantly evolving.
Inside GENESIS lives new beginnings and re-birth, allowing for us to continually re-invent. We are planting a seed, lighting a spark, and creating new beginnings for the communities throughout the globe.
GENESIS represents the birth of this program and the generations of this program that are to come.
The Journey:
Founded in 2006, Genesis started as a two-week summer/winter dance program that brought together youth from different cities and ethnic groups in BiH. we have continued bi-annual intensives and outreach to communities in BiH and have since also established a consistent company of 10 local dancers and various choreographers/instructors from around the world.
We are past recipients of the US Embassy Public Diplomacy Grant and the International Freedom to Create Grant. Genesis continues to provide a space for young adults to interact, grow creatively, and engage with local communities.
The Program:
The activities include regular classes where participants receive training in jazz, ballet, contemporary, and hip-hop from GENESIS: SARAJEVO instructors from the U.S., Bosnia, and Europe. In addition to the regular classes, we invite guest instructors from the Balkan region, Europe, and the United States to conduct workshops in different dance styles with participants. The aim of the workshops is to foster intercultural exchange between artists in other parts of the Balkans and Europe where dance is more developed. In addition, GENESIS: SARAJEVO presents performances in which participants perform in Sarajevo as well as other cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina to bring more dance exposure to the region. Participants also perform their own social awareness choreography during these performances.
The Objectives:
- To spread dance, especially tap, jazz, ballet, contemporary, and hip-hop beyond Sarajevo to other towns and areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- To provide regular professional dance training for children/youth to prepare them to be a performance based company that performs in Bosnia and eventually other countries
- To continue their development as dancers and as more productive members of society
- To foster mediation between different ethnicities through dance and arts education while developing new community bonds
- To use dance in an awareness campaign to address societal issues in Bosnia and around the world
- To provide youth from all economic backgrounds with a livelihood and career in dance, dance education, and arts management
The Future:
GENESIS: SARAJEVO is a place where new artists are created and where new barriers will be broken. We are tapping into the resources of Bosnia-Herzegovina that remain for the most part untouched to create new opportunities and new possibilities. We are working to enrich the lives of youth, to enrich the culture that runs through Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to cultivate the passion and talents that live within. The journey of GENESIS: SARAJEVO is the generating of new lives…one life touches another life which touches another life and so on. Our journey involves giving back to the community, unifying different races and religions to work together, and spreading the visceral language and art of dance and music.
genesis : blog 