what is LVHD
LVHD is a collaboration of Bharata Natyam dancers and survivors of sexual/domestic violence to bring their stories to the community and heal together. After over a year of sharing, creating, thinking and dancing together, LVHD grew into a garland of mini-performances to experience. The process of LVHD included making 4 dance films for survivor-dancer duos. Those making work for film chose a location in the Phoenix area where they felt revictimized and/or empowered in their experience of violence to perform their collaborative work. The 4 films, 3 solo performances and 2 ensemble pieces were presented with original music in Tempe, AZ, on February 29 and March 1, 2020. LVHD was designed to demonstrate the art of Indian dance as a powerful medium for healing, for survivors to communicate their experiences and knowledge to their communities, and for community justice, especially by advocating for nonviolence.
LVHD 2025-the call
LVHD is returning. Dansense collaborators--including Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice (CSSJ), Rising Youth Theater (RYT), and the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence (ACESDV), and alumna participants from 2020--will help lead the process in more communities around the USA. The power of dance to heal, to communicate and to engage still resonates in our beings as we prepare for 2025-2026. LVHD seeks to do what dance has always done—build community for everyone.
Photo/Video Credits for Website: Ri Lindegren, Coley Curry
