While taking part in an energetic three-day convening at Georgetown University dedicated to “Global Performance, Civic Imagination, and Cultural Diplomacy,” it became clear that the meeting was itself evidence for the continued emergence of a global network linking artists, performers, cultural policy makers, human rights activists, social justice advocates, academics, diplomacy practitioners, and others in international affairs, all variously pursuing new intersections of the arts with cu

An initiative of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Center Stage brings compelling contemporary artists from Haiti, Indonesia and Pakistan to the United States to engage Americans in cultural diplomacy as a way to create opportunities for greater understanding.

In cooperation with Fredrikstad municipality in Norway, the Hong Kong based Theatre Studio and the Norwegian theatre lab Studium Actoris have initiated a three-year long cultural exchange program which is to culminate in a theatre production celebrating the 150 years jubilee of Norway and China’s most famous painters, Edward Munch and Qi Bashi.

Today, the U.S. Department of State announced it will raise the curtain June 19 on its groundbreaking cultural diplomacy initiative, Center Stage, which brings performing artists from Haiti, Indonesia, and Pakistan to the United States to engage American audiences in 60 medium- and small-sized towns and cities.

Five major literature festivals - the Jaipur Literature Festival, Mountain Echoes in Bhutan, the Kathmandu Literary Yatra, the Galle Literary Festival in Sri lanka and the Karachi Literature Festival - which have been showcasing literature as a medium of holistic exchange together with music, performing and visual arts and local lifestyles are forging a new south Asian solidarity on the strength of the region's soft power.

The Indian Council of Cultural Relations, which has brought the play to India, said in a statement: "The Afghan actors in the play are hoping to redefine Shakespeare - and public perception about theatre in Afghanistan by performing the play."

Over the years, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations has sent me to many countries to perform. Unlike professional engagements...the ICCR tours usually put you directly in the hands of Indian ambassadors in various countries, who then use you as best they think, besides having certain fixed arrangements at festivals.

Turkey and the Netherlands are celebrating 400 years of diplomatic ties with a yearlong series of events, including an exhibition that draws parallels between the Dutch of the 17th century and the Turks of today...“We also tried to show the bridge between Dutch culture and Ottoman culture in the 17th century.”