About Us


The Nnabagereka with the founders of Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc. and dancers at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, September 2005

WHO WE ARE

Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc. believes that dance and the arts are critical components of poverty eradication, peace building, and educational efforts. Our goal is to increase international cooperation with Uganda in the arts to facilitate empowerment, growth, collaboration, and artistic training. Three goals guide our work:

HOW WE CAME TO BE

Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc. grew out of a meeting between Uganda's Bugandan Queen and an American consultant on mission for the World Bank in Uganda. The Queen's experience laying the foundation for her country's first dance school paralleled similar experiences the consultant had led in Argentina and the United States. United in their love of Uganda and their commitment to the arts and poverty eradication, the two shared a vision to expand the scope of arts education in Africa. After a year volunteering as the International Development Director for the Queen's dance school, formerly the Kampala Ballet and Modern Dance School, an opportunity arose to forge more formal partnerships with international institutions seeking to assist the Ugandan effort.

Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc. was born.

WHO WE SUPPORT

Uganda's First Dance School

A year ago history was made in Sub-Saharan Africa when the Nnabagereka became the first African to establish a professional dance training school on the sub-continent. Though other schools exist in Africa, most were established during the Colonial Era by non-Africans. The Kampala Dance School, formerly the Kampala Ballet and Modern Dance School, strives to contribute to the healthy development of children, offering a safe and stimulating physical environment in which to strengthen the mind, body, and spirit. In its first year, more than 400 Kampala residents flocked to the school to take what were the first formal dance classes offered in the country.
The income generated through Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc.'s inaugural Benefit Concerts will be devoted to expanding the outreach activities of the Kampala Dance School. Bringing dance to Ugandans living with HIV/AIDS, supporting a program of dance instruction at the Kampala School for the Physically Disabled, and facilitating an extension program to bring dance and creative movement into Ugandan public schools constitute the core activities supported through Concerts.

OUR PARTNERS

The Nnabagereka

Her Royal Highness (HRH) the Queen Sylvia Nagginda Nnabagereka is the traditional and cultural leader of the people of Buganda. The Bugandan Kingdom is the largest of the four Ugandan Kingdoms and the one in which the capital city, Kampala, lies. For the past five seven years the Nnabagereka has worked tirelessly and selflessly to compliment the ongoing poverty eradication-focused work of the Kingdom and the country at large. Her zeal to fight for the rights of the marginalized and disadvantaged people in Ugandan society, including women, youth, and people with disabilities is visibly portrayed in all her work. A pillar of development, HRH established the Nnabagereka Development Trust Fund (NDTF), a charitable organization whose mission is to restore the vitality of Buganda and Uganda at large by marshalling community and household human resources for social and economic development. Both a UN Goodwill Ambassador to the Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) and a goodwill ambassador for Celtel Uganda, HRH has also worked with the Ministries of Health Buganda and Uganda, the World Health Organization, and UNICEF.

The Vibrant New York City Dance Community

In September 2005 the Nnabagereka enjoyed a week-long whistle-stop tour of New York City's most prominent dance institutions. The Alvin Ailey School, The Juilliard School, the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Complexions, New York University, Ballet Tech, the Little Red School House, the New York City Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem, and the School of American Ballet showed tremendous receptivity to the Nnabagereka and the International Dance Director during their initial visits. Together, the Uganda team and these organizations shared a willingness to explore the possibility of future faculty exchanges, company tours, and student/teacher workshops in Uganda. As well, dancers, choreographers, and New York City-dance schools expressed a strong interest in contributing to a series of Dance Benefit Concerts to raise funds for the school and deepen the collaboration between the American and Ugandan artistic communities. Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc. is proud to host the first of these events on March 3 and 4, 2006 at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater in New York.

We are particularly grateful to the dance companies and dance schools contributing their artistry to these incredible nights of dance.

HOW TO HELP

Become a supporter of Uganda Arts Outreach, Inc.

Expanding the scope of arts outreach efforts in Uganda is no small task. We are seeking donors--foundations, corporate sponsors, philanthropists, private contributors--to help us let the arts enter the lives of more Ugandans today. Please contact our directors to discuss the many avenues available for those interested in supporting our efforts.

OUR TEAM

Founding Co-Director and International Development Director of the Kampala Dance School: Sara E. Farley
Founding Co-Director: Edisa Weeks
Senior Advisor: Dr. Caroline Njuki
Marketing Director: Kate Durocher
Senior Uganda Liaison: Michael Muganga
Information Technology Director: Angus Durocher
Legal Counsel: Milan Patel
Dance Company Liaison: Melissa Summers
Dance Company Liaison: Kirsten Seacor
Event Director: Rachel Makofsky
Event Director: Amy Solarz
Event Director: Parand Zendehrouh
Uganda Liaison: Jill Pribylova
Business Development Consultant: Stephanie Pieczenik
Designer: Sam Minor
Print Production Manager: Avi Bonime