How it all started

A short-video about the creation of Creative Play, animated by our young friend.

The Full Story

Creative Play is a student-led art education initiative created by Bard College students. Co-founders Ifigeneia Gianne and Noa Doucette started the project during an ethnography project in Malaysia with a stipend from the Consortium on Forced Migration, Displacement and Education. The study focused on observing migrants, refugee populations and local grassroots organizations. Inspired by the dedication of educators and the curiosity of some of the refugees themselves, Ifigeneia and Noa wanted to offer creative art education resources.

In June 2024, Creative Play returned to Kuala Lumpur, after being awarded the Project for Peace award from the Davis Foundation, to facilitate in-person storytelling workshops in the mediums of theater, music, and podcasting, with a shared focus on storytelling.

Mission

Engaging communities through individual and communal art experimentation, we harness the strength of local collaboration to create opportunities in education and the arts. We are committed to supporting refugee initiatives and championing equal access to education for all.

Vision

Empowering communities through art, education, and collaboration, we envision a world where every individual has the opportunity to create, learn, and thrive—regardless of their background or circumstances. Together, we build from the ground up, fostering resilience and equity for all.

Meet the Team

Co-founder & Workshop Leader

Noa Doucette

Noa Doucette studies Music and Global International Studies with an interest in Migration Studies at Bard College. She has been studying the violin for 13 years and considers the project to not only be a proposal for increasing creative art exchange but also a medium for empowerment and self- advocacy.

Co-founder & Workshop Leader

Ifigeneia Gianne

Ifigeneia Gianne is a Bard College student majoring in Anthropology and Theater & Performance. Ifigeneia is passionate about the project’s experimentation with multimodal storytelling and the intersectionality between the arts and activism. She is beyond excited to be part of the Creative Play team!

Outreach Manager

Mujtaba Naqib

Mujtaba Naqib is majoring in Computer Science at Bard College with an emphasis in data analysis. Mujtaba has lived as an immigrant in Malaysia, has a deep and personal involvement with the country’s refugee situation and wishes to partake in the improvement of educational opportunities provided to refugees there.

Workshop Leader

Antonios Petras

Antonis Petras is a Masters student in Mobility Studies at the University of Thessaly, focusing on colonialism and environmental racism. Antonis thinks of this project as an exceptional attempt of bringing forth academic knowledge and artistic expression, as well as a skill sharing opportunity for all participants.

Workshop Leader

Leonard Gurevich

Leonard Gurevich has graduated from the Theater and Performance program at Bard College and finishes his studies in Piano Performance at the Bard Conservatory of Music. He holds an Associate Degree in Piano Performance and Music Pedagogy from the Ippolitov-Ivanov Institute of Music in Moscow.

Summer Intern

Kelany De La Cruz

Creative Play’s mission to provide accessible creative education to children around the world and its intersection with international relations/migration led me to seek to intern with them. Their work is important to me because it crosses the boundaries of borders and traditional education systems.