A New York Tour to Remember
Executive Director Rita Ezenwa-Okoro's NYC Trip
On January 7, 2023, six months after Rita Ezenwa-Okoro’s emergence as the first Executive Director of the Global Play Brigade (GPB), she set out on a New York tour. A 5-day Congress, three grand receptions, a day at the beach, and a visit to the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) were what characterized this unique New York tour. Here’s how it went down.
She was welcomed to the city by her dear friend and fellow brigadier Aurelie Harp who she had never met in person before, however, through the GPB, they had grown a strong bond spanning over two years of engagement.
Watch the video of their first meeting.
Rita is a three-time global fellow of the International Society of the Performing Arts and so had to attend its 2023 Congress which began on Tuesday, January 9, 2023. Most recently, Rita made history as the first Nigerian elected and appointed to the prestigious board of directors of this almost 75 years old institution. Being a part of this Congress of over 500 attendees worldwide, presented a great opportunity to network and spread the Global Play Brigade’s message with everyone. Rita also got the opportunity to be a part of ISPA’s Podcast Live Recording, where she read excerpts from her book entitled
Doing. Being. Becoming for the love of the creative arts
and shared her work at the Street Project Foundation in Nigeria and Global Play Brigade.
After the Congress, Rita attended a special GPB reception organized in collaboration with the East Side Institute, New York which she is an alumnus and associate of, on Friday, January 13, 2023. She was moved by the presence of many who she had not seen since the pandemic and those she met in person for the first time after over two years of meeting online. After being introduced by Carrie Lobman- Faculty of ESI, and Cathy R. Salit - Founder of Global Play Brigade, Rita gave a moving speech that ended with a call for everyone to spread the word of GPB and this followed with the distribution of GPB ‘Play it Forward’ buttons. The event then evolved into a book signing ceremony.
Afterward, seasoned musicians, tech, and non-profit organization leaders convened at Cathy’s home in Setauket, Stony Brook, New York, to welcome Rita Ezenwa-Okoro. After a bit of small talk and small chops, Cathy got everyone in the room to play a game of “Yes but & Yes and” after which Rita was introduced to share her vision for the Global Play Brigade which left many intrigued.
After back-to-back receptions, it only made sense for Rita to spend some time at the beach house of Lois Holzman-Co-founder of the East Side Institute, and Dan Friedman- Faculty of the East Side Institute, in Montauk, New York. This gave her time to refresh by the ocean side, taking evening walks and catching a beautiful glimpse of the sunset.
On her return back to New York City, Rich Sokolow, who is a long-time member of the performance activism community, hosted a reception at his home. It was a unique crowd of friends from his children’s school, his colleagues at work, representatives of the All Stars Project and representatives of the ESI and GPB communities.
After months of nurturing a working relationship with the Under Secretary of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) following Rita Ezenwa-Okoro’s Street Project Foundation United Nations and BMW Group’s Intercultural Innovation Award, a meeting with the leadership of the UNAOC was secured. The meeting, attended by Cathy R. Salit and Rita Ezenwa-Okoro, ended with a request by the Under Secretary, Mr. Miguel Moratinos to develop a concept note for a BIG project that will be implemented by both the UNAOC and the Global Play Brigade.
What an exciting way to round up a very significant and memorable trip designed for the growth of the Global Play Brigade.
