Andrew Nemr

Artist // Speaker

Public Speaking

I’m going Around the World!

By Andrew

Over the next 6 weeks I’ll be going around the world, literally. This is a huge trip, celebrating tap dance and connecting with friends from many of the communities I call home – faith, TED, artists, etc. If you’re in any one of these cities, let’s connect! I’d love to see you.

Tel Aviv – May 4-14th, Taking part in this National Geographic Expedition organized by TED Fellow Aziz Abu Sarah, then taking some time to share some tap dancing at Pasito Studio.

Tokyo – May 15th-23rd, Sharing stories and dancing at Yellow Ren Cultural Center, Ginza Church, and Kaz Tap Studios.

Vancouver – May 24-30th, Tap Dance Day Celebrations at the Rhythm Room (Website) and Vancouver Tap Dance Society (Facebook Event) and sharing at local faith-centered communities.

Boise, Idaho – June 1-June 14th, Working the folks at Windrider on a documentary short, then speaking and performing at the REFLECT Conference!!

Rochester, NY – June 15-17th, Stompology Solo Jazz Dance Weekend.

Then home to rest (sort of ;-))

TED Residency Talk Online!!!

By Andrew

For almost four months I had the opportunity to work with a cohort of amazing people as part of the inaugural class of TED Residents. We all focused on our individual projects ranging from big data and social impact, to the arts and entrepreneurship, while encouraging and supporting one another. It was an amazing opportunity for me to focus on the work of the Tap Legacy™ Foundation.

This week TED released our TED talks!

See mine here.

You can see all the talks from the residency class here.

Plus, applications are open for the Spring 2017 Class of Residents HERE!!!

Preparing a New TED Talk

By Andrew

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In 2012 I was awarded a TED Fellowship. I traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland to give my first TED Talk on the Fellows stage of the TED Global conference. Over the past four years I’ve giving numerous talks at TEDx events all over the world and have met some of the most thoughtful and inspirational people I now call friends.

Talks aren’t easy. The unique combination of personal narrative, simple explanation, persuasion, and the unveiling of “Aha!” moments, as outlined in Chris Anderson’s most recent book, is potent, but difficult to unearth.

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Some talks take a few chances to get right. Others take a lot of rehearsal time and land beautifully the first time out. Many never have the impact the speaker hoped for. I say all that to say that I’m embarking on the process yet again. Unlike my previous talks, this one is tied to something I’ve been thinking about for a long time, and is very personal.

Since April of this year, I’ve been working from the offices at TED HQ in New York City as part of the TED Residency. My work at the residency has centered around the Tap Legacy™ Foundation and its Digital Archive.

As part of the residency I am tasked with preparing a TED Talk – personal, understandable, persuasive, and revelatory. In my preparation, I’ve had to confront myself with questions about what I really care about, why I care, why I dance, and why I think the work I’m currently engaged in is so important (hint: it’s not just about tap dance). The journey has been at times emotional, frustrating, and eye-opening. As the day for presenting the talk draws near, I’m excited about what I’m discovering and look forward to sharing it with you.

I will be giving that talk on July 12th. Sorry the event isn’t open to the public nor live-streamed, but I will announce it here when the talk goes live.

Thanks for your continued support of the work I do. It means the world.

Going to the Chapel…

By Andrew

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No, the rest of the song doesn’t apply just yet. This time I’m going simply to talk (and dance), for the folks at Wheaton College. I’ll be speaking not only at the chapel, but with some of the business entrepreneurs and music and dance students. I’m in the final preparations for my chapel talk and thought I’d share some thoughts about what I’ll be sharing.

An Achievement Oriented Society and LOVE

I’m most excited about talking about how Love can ease the perceived burden of an achievement oriented society. So many students suffer from pressures that are imposed by themselves, their families, and society at large, to do more, bigger, and better things. The ideal achievement becomes so prominent in ones life that it begins to intrude on the students’ identity, eventually fighting for attention with the very fuel of self-worth, love. Even instilling doubts and distortions leading to ideas like “I can’t say I love myself, unless I achieve this or that…”

I’m hoping to dive right into the fray and turn the model upside down. Love must come first.

LOVE as a fuel for Entrepreneurship

With the business students we will be talking about the ideas of service, sacrifice, and failure in the context of building businesses. How can Love shape their choices in terms of what businesses to build, but also how they go about building those businesses?

LOVE in the ensemble and in the body

For musicians and dancers proficiency is an undeniable necessity, but virtuosity can limit one’s ability to relate. For the musicians we’ll be talking about roles in the ensemble and how Love for the music AND the other players can provide a fundamental context of relatability. For the dancers we’ll be talking about how the dancer path is a reflection of sacrifice and embodiment and how those two concepts are fueled by and reflected in the greater idea of Love.

Memories of Dominicana

By Andrew

As the winter fights to stay around here in the Northeastern United States, and I’m missing the rest of my hair, I’m reminded of the time I spent in the heat of the Dominican Republic. My trip included 11 days of traveling the country, sharing my story of life and love in tap dancing to so many different people. From charter schools in Santo Domingo and late night television shows, jazz clubs and the bateyes, cultural theaters and beach resorts, to a painted riverside village and a mountain village that hadn’t had power until 1998. Over the course of the trip I was often the first tap dancer my audience had ever seen and we struggled through our language barriers. However, by the end of each session, a bond of simple humanness was evident. We exchanged stories, dances, and language, and I came away a different person.

Special thanks to the Civil Innovation Lab for the their Civil Dialogues, of which this trip was a part.

Link to an article from one of the stops on the trip.