InterPlay World News

7th Annual Men’s Retreat in Maryland

InterPlay leaders Tom Henderson (Raleigh) and Billy Amoss (Washington, DC) will lead their 7th Annual Men’ Retreat in this February at the Blue Mountain Retreat Center in Knoxville, MD, just an hour from DC and Baltimore.

This event has become a favorite of many men, both seasoned InterPlayers and newcomers. Come experience the power of connecting with other men through InterPlay’s easy incrementality. Find out more...

Celebrate Earth Day with Earth Play

Celebrate the beauty of earth, life, and interdependence on the weekend of Earth Day, April 20-22, 2012 with InterPlay Cofounder Cynthia Winton-Henry and Sally Lynne Mitchell in Anthony Chabot Park in Oakland.

The easy-to-learn InterPlay forms will provide a way to rediscover our connections to earth—our home—through movement, voice, story, stillness.

Read more about this exciting weekend in the woods...

Masankho Banda Visits Wheeling High School

Masankho Banda led a master class with the dancers in Orchesis, a Wheeling High School dance performance group directed by dance teacher and InterPlayer Diane Rawlinson in the Chicago suburbs. 

Masankho blends InterPlay with elements of his Malawian heritage. He shared his story with the dancers and taught three African song/dances to the kids.  Diane was overjoyed to offer the dancers the opportunity to meet and work with him.  “It was an experience they will never forget,” she noted. “What happened on Monday will stay with them for a long time.”

Diane led a recent successful effort to secure a Pepsi Refresh Grant to help Orchesis members attend the National High School Dance Festival in Philadelphia. The online voting process was supported by the InterPlayer community and many others in honor of her work and her students.

An Amazing Group of Young Artist/Activists Gathers in Oakland

The 12 participants in “Art & Social Change: InterPlay for Next Gen Leaders” gathered at InterPlayce in Oakland in the summer of 2010. Pictured in a wilder moment (from top left to bottom) are Tara Connolly (Raleigh), Stephanie Gesling (Sydney), Lindsey Gregerson (Seattle), Anna Stern (Lake Tahoe), Karin Frank (Seattle), Susan Featro (Tamaqua, PA), Sarah Gothe (LaPorte, IN), Greer Dokmanovic (Sydney), Melanie Chopko (Oakland), Rehana Tejpar (Toronto), and Tim Langeloh (Menlo Park). Not pictured is Emily Webb (Oakland).

These are gifted, wise, awesomely, oddly exquisite human beings. Most are connected directly to regions and mentors. To bring them together creates generational connection, courage, and support for their own visions. It makes it possible to open the door to learning, exchange, and intergenerational conversation. Most have already deconstructed a lot of the history of gender, body mind spirit split. Most are asking how their lives are of service to love, art, community and change. They are writers, dancers, musicians, singers, visual artists. How cool is that?

On the very first day one of them said, “I have to tell more people about InterPlay.” Others nodded. Amy Shoemaker who is not yet 30 is leading with InterPlay co-founders Cynthia Winton-Henry & Phil Porter. In addition, they have met with Shilpa Jain to do appreciative inquiry interviews and world cafe. They saw performances by WING IT! and Coke Nakamoto, made art with Mary Kuder, did vocal improv with author and mystic Carolyn North, and will participate with Rebecca Strong in her “Movement as Medicine: The Universe Story Performance”.

Thank you to all who have directly and indirectly supported this gathering! Watch for details about the 2011 Art & Social Change event!