Manizha Mahmudzoda moves from gymnastics into dance
By Louise Fenner
USINFO Staff Writer
Washington – Manizha Mahmudzoda, a 16-year-old gymnast from Dushanbe, Tajikistan, spent six weeks this summer studying modern dance and ballet at the American Dance Festival (ADF), a premier modern dance event in Durham, North Carolina.
Her artistry, skill and flexibility had impressed audiences in Dushanbe, including Jon Larsen, a U.S. Embassy official who saw Mahmudzoda perform as part of an exhibition in commemoration of the first day of spring, or navrouz. Larsen and his colleagues agreed that she “was one of the best dancers any one of us had ever seen,” he told USINFO.
His recommendation and that of another colleague at the State Department convinced the ADF to accept Mahmudzoda on fairly short notice and to offer her a scholarship covering tuition, room and board.
Mahmudzoda, who has trained in dance gymnastics since 2001, made the most of her experience at the festival, studying modern dance technique and ballet for six hours a day, four days a week. She was one of nearly 500 students from 24 countries at the 2007 festival, which is held annually at Duke University in Durham.
She is not devoting her energies exclusively to dance. This spring Mahmudzoda graduated from the English Access Microscholarship Program, a State Department-initiative that funds English language and leadership training for 14- to 18-year-olds in predominantly Muslim countries. Her classes took place at the Aga Khan Humanities Project at the University of Central Asia. That organization helped pay for her trip to the United States.
Complete at USINFO.STATE.GOV
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