ISH
Holland has always been a country that has produced progressive artists — from Rembrandt to Vermeer to Van Gogh. Now a new breed of Dutch artists are making a name for themselves in the United States with a remarkable program that came to West Palm Beach in April 2006 and April 2007. ISH returns in April 2008.

The ISH Institute, a self-described “multidisciplinary hip-hop company” whose home is in Amsterdam, visits West Palm Beach for a two-week residency which culminates in a performance by area youth who participate in an intensive theater experience.

For two-action packed weeks, forty adolescence youth from 3 afterschool programs from across Palm Beach County traveled to the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, the local performing arts theater, to study a variety of art forms performed by the ISH company: street dance, break dance, hip-hop, film and theater.

Working with ISH performers and local artists, the youth rotated through various workshops to gain an understanding of the skills needed to create a final demonstration performance. The performance was attended by more than seven hundred fifty individuals and performed on the main stage of the Kravis Center.

The ISH Institute residency is a partnership between Prime Time Palm Beach County and the Kravis Center. Financial support was generously provided by the Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County and John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.