American Musical Chairs in Beijing–A Reason to Celebrate
by Cathy Barbash
I’m delighted, no, thrilled to report that Anthony A. Hutchinson will become Senior Cultural Affairs Officer at the United States Embassy Beijing on August 2, and Dale Kreisher will become Cultural Affairs Officer in September.
I’ve known Tony since the winter of 2000 when he served as Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Consulate Shanghai, in which capacity he was tremendously helpful to touring American ensembles and other American cultural initiatives. Not only is he a genuine China Hand, he really truly loves the arts. I’ve only just met Dale, but he seems to share Tony’s enthusiasm, knowledge and commitment.
In the civilian realm, Alison Friedman, who has spent seven years in China working with a variety of cultural entities (Fulbright scholar, International Director of Beijing Modern Dance Company, General Manager of Tan Dun’s Parnassus Productions, etc.) will return to Washington , D.C., this fall for a year as a Kennedy Center Fellow.
That will leave more recent arrival and former Luce Scholar Sarabeth Berman, two years now the Program Director of BeijingDance/LDTX, as our resident American modern dance maven in Beijing.
In other dance news, word has it that SUNY Purchase has been actively looking for a dance partner in China for years, but I’ve not yet heard of any final decision.