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Stories From Military Moms Inspire New Dance Piece In Miami

Dancers (L to R) Kate Brennan, Abby Contreras, Shawn Buller, Oscar Trujillo, Martina Tarducci and  Jesús Vidal de León perform in Karen Peterson and Dancers' production of "Warmamas"
Karime Arabia
Dancers (L to R) Kate Brennan, Abby Contreras, Shawn Buller, Oscar Trujillo, Martina Tarducci and Jesús Vidal de León perform in Karen Peterson and Dancers' production of "Warmamas"

What does it feel like to send your child off to war?

Miami-based company Karen Peterson and Dancers will be exploring themes of fear, loss, pride, nurturing and support with its new work, “Warmamas: A Performance,"  which has its world premiere this weekend at Wynwood’s The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse.

The piece was inspired by an oral history project of the same name that took root in South Florida and is connected to both the University of Miami and one of NPR’s most popular segments -- StoryCorps.

“Warmamas” collects the stories of American mothers whose children have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. It was founded six years ago by Miami teacher Patricia Figueroa Sowers, whose son served in the Middle East in a diplomatic capacity.

WLRN's Christine DiMattei interviews choreographer Karen Peterson about her company's new work, "Warmamas: A Performance."

When Karen Peterson learned about the "Warmamas" project through her longtime creative partner, video artist Maria Lino, she says it was a "eureka" moment.

"I felt there was a lot of honesty and integrity in the voices I heard," she says.

Peterson also says the concept was a perfect fit for her physically integrated dance company, which welcomes dancers with and without disabilities.

WarMamas: A Perfomance - Trailer 2018 from Karen Peterson on Vimeo.

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If You Go:

"Warmamas: A Performance"

8 pm, Friday, May 4 and Saturday, May 5

The Light Box, 404 NW 26th Street, in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood.

The venue is fully wheelchair accessible.

A complimentary reception will be held after Saturday’s performance.

For more information, please visit: www.karenpetersondancers.org

Copyright 2018 WLRN 91.3 FM

Years ago, after racking her brains trying to find a fun, engaging, creative night gig to subsidize her acting habit, Chris decided to ride her commercial voiceover experience into the fast-paced world of radio broadcasting. She started out with traffic reporting, moved on to news -- and never looked back. Since then, Chris has worked in newsrooms throughout South Florida, producing stories for radio broadcasts and the web.