Core Of Culture - Who We Are
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Core of Culture is a flexible, adaptable organization that intervenes on behalf of ancient dances and their practitioners. Today, CoC has become a respected facilitator, expert, creative force, consultant, partner, advocate and scholar in the field of endangered dance.
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Our Team
Nancy Kiernan AICP, LEED AP - Chair
Nancy Kiernan, Vice President of FCL Builders, is an urban planner and business development professional. Nancy provides strategic planning and client management services for one of the Midwest’s most distinguished Design/Build firms. She manages growth efforts and project pursuits in emerging markets. The mother of four grown daughters, she enjoys Traditional Irish music, reading historical biography, and fishing/camping with her husband of over 25 years. Nancy works with COC to facilitate board planning efforts and “ad hoc” strategic initiatives.
Nancy Kiernan, Vice President of FCL Builders, is an urban planner and business development professional. Nancy provides strategic planning and client management services for one of the Midwest’s most distinguished Design/Build firms. She manages growth efforts and project pursuits in emerging markets. The mother of four grown daughters, she enjoys Traditional Irish music, reading historical biography, and fishing/camping with her husband of over 25 years. Nancy works with COC to facilitate board planning efforts and “ad hoc” strategic initiatives.
Richard Darga - Secretary;Treasurer
Richard Darga is Dean of the Library at Chicago State University. He has been an adjunct faculty and university administrator since 2003. Prior to joining Chicago State University he was the Chief Information Officer for Northern Michigan Regional Health System.
Dr. Darga used his dissertation research with distance learning technologies as a foundation to move from his prior responsibility of Service Line Director for Behavior Health and Substance Abuse Services into information management. During his five year tenure with mental health services, he lead an innovative and successful turn around for behavioral services by formally collaborating with public and private organizations to dramatically improve and expand patient services.
Richard began his career of service in the K-12 arena where he taught in public and private schools in various capacities. Richard taught in a Native American boarding school, University of Michigan's Children's Psychiatric Hospital developed and opened an innovative program for autistic children and taught in a day treatment program in Detroit among several other creative experiences.
Richard has presented at several national conferences. He is a FRYE fellow giving him extensive exposure and a deep understanding of higher education challenges and opportunities.
In addition to his interest in mental health, technology and education, Dr. Darga has been very interested in culture and opportunities to learn from different perspectives. He has traveled extensively, most recently to China. For a year, he studied at the Jagellonian University in Krakow Poland.
Richard Darga is Dean of the Library at Chicago State University. He has been an adjunct faculty and university administrator since 2003. Prior to joining Chicago State University he was the Chief Information Officer for Northern Michigan Regional Health System.
Dr. Darga used his dissertation research with distance learning technologies as a foundation to move from his prior responsibility of Service Line Director for Behavior Health and Substance Abuse Services into information management. During his five year tenure with mental health services, he lead an innovative and successful turn around for behavioral services by formally collaborating with public and private organizations to dramatically improve and expand patient services.
Richard began his career of service in the K-12 arena where he taught in public and private schools in various capacities. Richard taught in a Native American boarding school, University of Michigan's Children's Psychiatric Hospital developed and opened an innovative program for autistic children and taught in a day treatment program in Detroit among several other creative experiences.
Richard has presented at several national conferences. He is a FRYE fellow giving him extensive exposure and a deep understanding of higher education challenges and opportunities.
In addition to his interest in mental health, technology and education, Dr. Darga has been very interested in culture and opportunities to learn from different perspectives. He has traveled extensively, most recently to China. For a year, he studied at the Jagellonian University in Krakow Poland.
John Porter - Board Member
John Porter was appointed to the Board as Executive Chairman of Deal Group Media plc in November 2005. He has an active role within the business and oversees the Group’s strategy and operations. John has substantial PLC experience particularly within the technology and online sectors. He is also Chairman of i-spire Plc, a new media investment company with a shareholding in Deal Group Media plc.
As a founder of Redbus Interhouse PLC he served as chairman during its early stages and in November 2005 the company was merged with Telecity. John Porter was the co-founder of Verifone Inc, the market innovator and leader in credit verification equipment and service, which was sold to Hewlett Packard in 1997. John is a graduate of Oxford University, Institute d’Etudes Politiques, Paris and Stanford University.
John Porter was appointed to the Board as Executive Chairman of Deal Group Media plc in November 2005. He has an active role within the business and oversees the Group’s strategy and operations. John has substantial PLC experience particularly within the technology and online sectors. He is also Chairman of i-spire Plc, a new media investment company with a shareholding in Deal Group Media plc.
As a founder of Redbus Interhouse PLC he served as chairman during its early stages and in November 2005 the company was merged with Telecity. John Porter was the co-founder of Verifone Inc, the market innovator and leader in credit verification equipment and service, which was sold to Hewlett Packard in 1997. John is a graduate of Oxford University, Institute d’Etudes Politiques, Paris and Stanford University.
Jan Schmidt - Board Member
Jan Schmidt is the Curator of the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, where she has worked for 20 years, most recently as the Acting Curator.
Ms. Schmidt began in 1989 as a Specialist in the Dance Division’s Jerome Robbins Archive of the Recorded Moving Image, and was later promoted to Coordinator of the Archive.During this time, she produced original documentations of hundreds of dance performances by companies ranging from ballet and modern dance to ethnic and social dance. In addition she has produced documentation of the work of tap dance great Savion Glover, the Haitian dance master Jean-Leon Destiné, the Korean dance exponent Sun Ock Lee, the Dancers and Musicians of Bali, and the traditional West African dance of Les Ballets Bagata. Recent preservation work on films, which have included such notable works as Martha Graham’s Primitive Mysteries and Night Journey and Alvin Ailey’s Streams, Blues Suite, and Hermit Song will ensure these unique recordings will be available for generations to come. She also acquired films and videotapes through donations from many companies and choreographers and oversaw the work of the Archive, including negotiating with donors and unions to open up previously restricted collections.
Promoted to Assistant Curator in 2007, she worked with the Curator on acquisitions, preservation, access policies and grant writing. She was instrumental in the preservation and presentation of George Balanchine’s ballet Don Quixote. In addition, she has been active in the presentation of public events and programs such as the recent Danse/Dance -- Paris/New York at the Library’s Bruno Walter Auditorium. The free screenings of several French dance films on May 29 inaugurated a cultural exchange program between Cinémathèque de la Danse and the Jerome Robbins Dance Division. Among the selections were Jean Babilee in Roland Petit’s Le Jeune Homme et la mort (1955)and La Plantation excerpt of Josephine Baker in the Folies Bergeres (1927).
Her publications include “Creating a Dance Archive: Documenting the Art and Collecting its Records,” the Korea Society for Dance Documentation (2008), “The Collaborative Editing Project to Document Dance,” which she wrote with M.N. Levine, M.M. Nichols, and E. Peck (2001), and “Djoniba Dance and Drum Centre,” New York Stories (2001).
Jan Schmidt is the Curator of the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, where she has worked for 20 years, most recently as the Acting Curator.
Ms. Schmidt began in 1989 as a Specialist in the Dance Division’s Jerome Robbins Archive of the Recorded Moving Image, and was later promoted to Coordinator of the Archive.During this time, she produced original documentations of hundreds of dance performances by companies ranging from ballet and modern dance to ethnic and social dance. In addition she has produced documentation of the work of tap dance great Savion Glover, the Haitian dance master Jean-Leon Destiné, the Korean dance exponent Sun Ock Lee, the Dancers and Musicians of Bali, and the traditional West African dance of Les Ballets Bagata. Recent preservation work on films, which have included such notable works as Martha Graham’s Primitive Mysteries and Night Journey and Alvin Ailey’s Streams, Blues Suite, and Hermit Song will ensure these unique recordings will be available for generations to come. She also acquired films and videotapes through donations from many companies and choreographers and oversaw the work of the Archive, including negotiating with donors and unions to open up previously restricted collections.
Promoted to Assistant Curator in 2007, she worked with the Curator on acquisitions, preservation, access policies and grant writing. She was instrumental in the preservation and presentation of George Balanchine’s ballet Don Quixote. In addition, she has been active in the presentation of public events and programs such as the recent Danse/Dance -- Paris/New York at the Library’s Bruno Walter Auditorium. The free screenings of several French dance films on May 29 inaugurated a cultural exchange program between Cinémathèque de la Danse and the Jerome Robbins Dance Division. Among the selections were Jean Babilee in Roland Petit’s Le Jeune Homme et la mort (1955)and La Plantation excerpt of Josephine Baker in the Folies Bergeres (1927).
Her publications include “Creating a Dance Archive: Documenting the Art and Collecting its Records,” the Korea Society for Dance Documentation (2008), “The Collaborative Editing Project to Document Dance,” which she wrote with M.N. Levine, M.M. Nichols, and E. Peck (2001), and “Djoniba Dance and Drum Centre,” New York Stories (2001).
Doris McGee - Board Member
Senior Director, Corporate and Foundation Relations at Loyola University Health System since November 2008, Doris McGee has over 18 years of wide-ranging non-profit experience, with expertise in program development, fundraising, strategic planning, management and operations. Highlyskilled in relationship building and communications, Ms. McGee has held similar positions at Illinois Institute of Technology, The Field Museum,Chicago Opera Theatre, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and Wisonsin Youth Symphony Orchestras and is a member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
Senior Director, Corporate and Foundation Relations at Loyola University Health System since November 2008, Doris McGee has over 18 years of wide-ranging non-profit experience, with expertise in program development, fundraising, strategic planning, management and operations. Highlyskilled in relationship building and communications, Ms. McGee has held similar positions at Illinois Institute of Technology, The Field Museum,Chicago Opera Theatre, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and Wisonsin Youth Symphony Orchestras and is a member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
Joan Erdman - Executive Advisor
Joan Erdman, PhD, is Professor of Anthropology and Cultural Studies at Columbia College Chicago.She earned her BA in Social Relations from Radcliffe College, Harvard University, and her MA and PhD in Anthropology from the University of Chicago.
Dr. Erdman is an anthropologist and writer who teaches courses that consider India’s cultural policies, artists in particular societies, ethnographic research methods, eastern humanities, and the patronage of the arts in various cultures. Her books include Stages: The Art and Adventures of Zohra Segal (who is one of India's most famed actors); Arts Patronage in India: Methods, Motives and Markets, for which she was the editor and a contributor; and Patrons and Performers in Rajasthan: The Suble Tradition.
Her recent articles focus on dancer and choreographer Uday Shankar, and new dance in India, including Dance Discourses: Rethinking the History of the 'Oriental Dance'. She is working on a book length manuscript on Uday Shankar and his art as a dancer and choreographer.
Joan Erdman, PhD, is Professor of Anthropology and Cultural Studies at Columbia College Chicago.She earned her BA in Social Relations from Radcliffe College, Harvard University, and her MA and PhD in Anthropology from the University of Chicago.
Dr. Erdman is an anthropologist and writer who teaches courses that consider India’s cultural policies, artists in particular societies, ethnographic research methods, eastern humanities, and the patronage of the arts in various cultures. Her books include Stages: The Art and Adventures of Zohra Segal (who is one of India's most famed actors); Arts Patronage in India: Methods, Motives and Markets, for which she was the editor and a contributor; and Patrons and Performers in Rajasthan: The Suble Tradition.
Her recent articles focus on dancer and choreographer Uday Shankar, and new dance in India, including Dance Discourses: Rethinking the History of the 'Oriental Dance'. She is working on a book length manuscript on Uday Shankar and his art as a dancer and choreographer.
Sangita Shresthova Phd - Executive Advisor
A Czech/Nepalese dancer and media scholar, Sangita focuses on the intersections between technology and dance as they relate to questions of cultural continuity and globalization. She studied Bharata Natyam, Charya Nritya (Nepalese Dance), Kalaripayat (South Indian martial art) and contemporary dance techniques alongside her professional training at the LSE and MIT where she received the Council for the Arts Wiesner award for her work in dance and new media. Sangita belonged to the Boston-based Lasandhi Dance Theater, a dance group focused on addressing South Asian women's issues, and was a guest choreographer for the Constanza Macras/DorkyPark production "Big in Bombay", supported by the Berliner Festspiele/Spielzeit Europa, Schaubuehne am Lehniner Platz, and the Schauspielhaus Wien. Focusing on the transnational dimensions of Hindi film (Bollywood), she is a co-organizer of the annual Prague Bollywood Festival and was a member of the Post Natyam Collective. Sangita also holds a PhD. from the Department of World Arts and Cultures at the University of California, Los Angeles.
A Czech/Nepalese dancer and media scholar, Sangita focuses on the intersections between technology and dance as they relate to questions of cultural continuity and globalization. She studied Bharata Natyam, Charya Nritya (Nepalese Dance), Kalaripayat (South Indian martial art) and contemporary dance techniques alongside her professional training at the LSE and MIT where she received the Council for the Arts Wiesner award for her work in dance and new media. Sangita belonged to the Boston-based Lasandhi Dance Theater, a dance group focused on addressing South Asian women's issues, and was a guest choreographer for the Constanza Macras/DorkyPark production "Big in Bombay", supported by the Berliner Festspiele/Spielzeit Europa, Schaubuehne am Lehniner Platz, and the Schauspielhaus Wien. Focusing on the transnational dimensions of Hindi film (Bollywood), she is a co-organizer of the annual Prague Bollywood Festival and was a member of the Post Natyam Collective. Sangita also holds a PhD. from the Department of World Arts and Cultures at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Joseph Houseal - Executive Director
Joseph Houseal, a graduate of St John's College, Annapolis, Maryland, obtained a Masters in the Philosophy of Dance from the Laban Centre for Movement and Dance in London, under the late Dr Peter Brinson. Houseal was trained for 7 years in Japanese Noh under Kita Master Matsui Akira. Former Artistic Director of Parnassus Dancetheatre in Kyoto, he has also worked as Artistic Director for soul singer Chaka Khan. An Emmy nominee for his PBS work on a Kabuki dance, “Ancient Elegance”, Houseal has also produced TV pieces on the reconstruction of Nijinsky's “La Sacre du Printemps” by the Joffrey Ballet.
As Director of CoC, Houseal has overseen dance preservation and research projects in Ladakh - from where CoC’s first Buddhist Cham dance restoration DVDs were produced - Pakistan, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and the Kingdom of Bhutan, where CoC executed a 5- year project culminating in a touring exhibition of Buddhist art and Cham dance, presented by Honolulu Academy of Arts.
Museum installations of ancient dance designed by Houseal have appeared in 11 museums, including the San Francisco Museum of Asian Art, the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art ( New York ); The Guimet Museum ( Paris ); The Rietberg Museum ( Zurich ) ; The Victoria & Albert Museum ( London ); the National Museum of Scotland ( Edinburgh ); and the Museum of World Cultures ( Cologne ).
As Part of “The Many Faces of Buddhism” project of the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation, Houseal directed “A Day of Rare Buddhist Dances” at the Victoria and Albert Museum in Spring 2009, bringing sacred performers from Ladakh, Tibet, Japan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The performances of that day are now in the form of a set of DVDs available to archives around the world.
Houseal has spoken at Oxford University, the University of Michigan, the Arts Club of Chicago, the Taipei National University of the Arts, The Banff Centre, the Beijing Dance Research Institute and other distinguished venues. He is sought out internationally as an expert on ancient dance, and as a producer of events incorporating ancient dances in revelatory ways.
Houseal has been awarded an Asian Cultural Council Grant and the Banff Mountain Culture Award. Work he has directed has been honored with the Dance Heritage Coalition’s citation for Best Practices in Dance Research and Production. CoC’s work in Bhutan under Houseal’s direction was presented the Global Vision Award for Cultural Preservation by Conde Nast in 2007. Houseal has been a regular contributor to Ballet Review, New York, since 1984, and is an internationally recognized writer on dance.
Joseph Houseal, a graduate of St John's College, Annapolis, Maryland, obtained a Masters in the Philosophy of Dance from the Laban Centre for Movement and Dance in London, under the late Dr Peter Brinson. Houseal was trained for 7 years in Japanese Noh under Kita Master Matsui Akira. Former Artistic Director of Parnassus Dancetheatre in Kyoto, he has also worked as Artistic Director for soul singer Chaka Khan. An Emmy nominee for his PBS work on a Kabuki dance, “Ancient Elegance”, Houseal has also produced TV pieces on the reconstruction of Nijinsky's “La Sacre du Printemps” by the Joffrey Ballet.
As Director of CoC, Houseal has overseen dance preservation and research projects in Ladakh - from where CoC’s first Buddhist Cham dance restoration DVDs were produced - Pakistan, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and the Kingdom of Bhutan, where CoC executed a 5- year project culminating in a touring exhibition of Buddhist art and Cham dance, presented by Honolulu Academy of Arts.
Museum installations of ancient dance designed by Houseal have appeared in 11 museums, including the San Francisco Museum of Asian Art, the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art ( New York ); The Guimet Museum ( Paris ); The Rietberg Museum ( Zurich ) ; The Victoria & Albert Museum ( London ); the National Museum of Scotland ( Edinburgh ); and the Museum of World Cultures ( Cologne ).
As Part of “The Many Faces of Buddhism” project of the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation, Houseal directed “A Day of Rare Buddhist Dances” at the Victoria and Albert Museum in Spring 2009, bringing sacred performers from Ladakh, Tibet, Japan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The performances of that day are now in the form of a set of DVDs available to archives around the world.
Houseal has spoken at Oxford University, the University of Michigan, the Arts Club of Chicago, the Taipei National University of the Arts, The Banff Centre, the Beijing Dance Research Institute and other distinguished venues. He is sought out internationally as an expert on ancient dance, and as a producer of events incorporating ancient dances in revelatory ways.
Houseal has been awarded an Asian Cultural Council Grant and the Banff Mountain Culture Award. Work he has directed has been honored with the Dance Heritage Coalition’s citation for Best Practices in Dance Research and Production. CoC’s work in Bhutan under Houseal’s direction was presented the Global Vision Award for Cultural Preservation by Conde Nast in 2007. Houseal has been a regular contributor to Ballet Review, New York, since 1984, and is an internationally recognized writer on dance.
Gerald Horton - Director of Technology
Gerald Horton has spent the last 10 years using his skills as a videographer to document and archive ancient dance traditions in the Himalayas for the Bhutan Dance Database, which he designed and maintains.
Gerald Horton has spent the last 10 years using his skills as a videographer to document and archive ancient dance traditions in the Himalayas for the Bhutan Dance Database, which he designed and maintains.
Nathan Whitmont - Associate Director
Nathan Whitmont is a wilderness guide, horse trainer, filmmaker, writer, and dance photographer from Bozeman Montana.
As associate director of CoC, Whitmont has directs media outreach and production design for ethnographic research, and performs remote field work.
Whitmont has studied and worked under numerous horse trainers and outfitters and currently trains and packs horses and mules for the U.S. Department of the Interior at Rocky Mountain National Park.
Whitmont's most current work includes producing and directing a short documentary film about cham in Ladakh India.
Nathan Whitmont is a wilderness guide, horse trainer, filmmaker, writer, and dance photographer from Bozeman Montana.
As associate director of CoC, Whitmont has directs media outreach and production design for ethnographic research, and performs remote field work.
Whitmont has studied and worked under numerous horse trainers and outfitters and currently trains and packs horses and mules for the U.S. Department of the Interior at Rocky Mountain National Park.
Whitmont's most current work includes producing and directing a short documentary film about cham in Ladakh India.
