"To All Relations: Sacred Moon Songs" is a multi-ethnic, arts residency project that seeks to draw links between the Japanese American, Mexican American and American Muslim communities through the shared experiences of all three communities with respect to relocation, deportation and expatriation. During WWII, west coast Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps; during the Depression more than 1 million (American born) Mexican Americans were sent "back" to Mexico; and, since 9/11, American Muslims have been routinely detained and questioned, with many having already been deported. Sacred Moon Songs also strives to strengthen ties between community groups such as Great Leap, Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), and Senshin Buddhist Temple; as well as engage participants in the betterment of the diverse communities in which they work and live.

Beginning in September 2003, Founder/Artistic Director Nobuko Miyamoto poet/musician Ruben Funkhuatl Guevara, led weekly writing and performance workshops at the Temple. The workshops were free and open to the public, and were part of Great Leap’s year-long community residency project, “To All Relations: Sacred Moon Songs.” Each week, Nobuko and Ruben, respectively, led the group through movement exercises designed to awaken the creative spirit and writing exercises that focused on the project’s central theme of relocation, deportation and expatriation. Community participants then created several pieces of inspiring prose and poetry that were woven together into an amazing piece of art.

"To All Relations: Sacred Moon Songs" is a work-in-progress choral poem that was first showcased as part of "Breaking The Fast," a multicultural celebration of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In addition to the work-in-progress showing of “To All Relations: Sacred Moon Songs,” the November 15th program at Senshin included speakers Reverend Masao Kodani of Senshin and Salam Al-Marayati and Sireen Sawaf of MPAC, as wellas several powerful poets and a performance of Kevin Higa and friends' 9/11 Bell Piece.

About the Sacred Moon Songs residency:

		Great Leapers and community participants just before their "To All Relations: Sacred Moon Songs" debut

Some Enchanted Evening-by Nona Chiang
Poems Inspired by Sacred Moon Songs:
--Ruben Funkahuatl Guevara
--Najeeba Syeed-Miller
--Vincent Kobelt

Participant Poems:
Jo Anna Mixpe Ley
Mari Hashimoto
Nader Elmakawi
Tomomi Kanemaru
Victoria Bernal
Joseph Pimentel
Ruben Funkahuatl Guevara
Ariel Robello
Vincent Kobelt
Hiroshi Murakawa
Nona Chiang
Najeeba Syeed-Miller
"Arts 4 City Youth" Poems

Story Gathering Photos/Video:
Workshops - October 2003
Breaking The Fast Performance - November 15, 2003

Other SMS Links:
Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR)
Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)

This project is supported in part by the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, The Aaroe Associates Charitable Foundation, Leadership for a Changing World - Ford Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Theatre Communications Group, FIA Insurance Services, Hitachi, Ltd., Meissner Manufacturing Co., Inc., the Friends of Great Leap, and more.

For more information regarding the Sacred Moon Songs residency contact Nona Chiang.

Updated: 1/22/04