In February 2022, Learning Courage hosted our second annual virtual event. This year our theme was Courage. It takes courage to tell your story, to stand up and speak out for change, to shift damaging cultural systems and dynamics that lead to harm, and to heal from sexual abuse and violence. This year our performers were inspired by our theme of courage and showed it through dance, poetry, song, spoken word, and storytelling; several of them even created new pieces, especially for our event.  We were honored to have Gregory Jbarra, well known for his role as “DCPI Garrett Moore” on the hit CBS police drama BLUE BLOODS, his extensive work on Broadway, and his Tony Award-winning for his portrayal of the Dad in Billy Elliot the musical serve as our host for the evening. 

We were honored that Chengcheng Yao will be sharing her musical gifts with us on Feb 8th. Chengcheng has performed at many venues across North America, Asia, and Europe, and as a soloist with orchestras all over the world. Her achievements include the Elizabeth Parisot Prize at Yale University, First and Special Prize in 71st Steinway International Piano Competition, First Prize in Sigma Alpha Iota Piano Concerto Competition and Harrison Winter Piano Competition, and Silver Medal in 68th Wideman International Piano Competition. She holds two master’s degrees from The Juilliard School and Yale School of Music and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Peabody Institute where she worked with legendary pianist Leon Fleisher. Chengcheng Yao | Pianist