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Ishmael Konney is an interdisciplinary Ghanaian artist born and raised in La (one of the major towns in Accra, the capital of the country). He received his undergraduate degree in Theatre Arts from University of Education, Winneba. He was recruited to the US where he earned his M.A degree in International Studies at Ohio University and his MFA degree in Dance at Ohio State University. At Ball State, he serves as an Assistant Teaching Professor of West African Dance. He also serves as dance faculty for Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts and as a board member for OhioDance under the Governance committee. He worked with the National Dance Company of Ghana, National Theatre and his research interest is to delve deeply into promoting Ghanaian cultural values while looking at the relationship and intersectionality between performance and Ghanaian cultural practices. His immediate research focuses on the Ghanaian storytelling tradition and its incorporation with contemporary dance.

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