Through works, deeds, and words Dr. RAS exemplifies his mission to use the arts as a vehicle for change in our global communities.
'The Key to longevity in any industry is versatility.'
'The Key to longevity in any industry is versatility.'
'RASOUL' THE NEW DEBUT ALBUM BY RAS MIKEY C!
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CREATE
Music
Laws of Love is the first single from RAS' debut album 'RASOUL'
'AN ECLECTIC MIX OF DR. RAS' DIVERSE MUSICAL PALLET, WITH SOULFUL VOCALS AND A POSITIVE POET MESSAGE'
PRODUCED BY KENNY ALLEN AND EAST AFRICA RECORDING STUDIO (E.A.R.S.) IN ADDIS ABEBA, ETHIOPIA. 
PhD Works
This community based cultural exchange, produce and directed by Dr. RAS MIkey C, explored Ethiopia's connection to the world through movement and featured choreographic collaborations with dance artists of Ethiopia and from other countries around the globe. Common Threads premiered July 2, 2016 at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's National Theatre to a public audience of over 1,200 people.
'Movement is life! Common Threads is a manifestation of movement across countries and cultures.' 
This show was produced and directed by Dr. RAS Mikey C as a part of the Africa Day Limerick 2015 events. This performance work was centred on the concept of coffee as a global culture. Coffee originates from a small region in Ethiopia called Kaffa and coffee is referred to as bunna, in Ethiopia’s national language Amharic. This Ethio-Modern Dance performance examined an intercultural exchange and the ways in which coffee/bunna has spread from Kaffa to the world. Dr. RAS Mikey uses the performing arts as a platform to illustrate how cultures from around the globe are connected through coffee, hence the title ‘A Coffee World’.
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EDUCATE
'We know that man’s physical needs and his intellectual and spiritual strivings can only be satisfied through the medium of education. '
(His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I Emperor of Ethiopia 1967: 362) Education is not a product of the typical classroom model where teacher dictates and student regurgitates. Education is a reciprocal relationship with a constant quest of enlightenment and understanding that can and should happen in every environment that one encounters. As a professional arts practitioner/educator, I firmly believe in the responsibility to share with each student the embodied knowledge that one has gained through lived experience. An educator is still learning and the ability to be flexible with instructional methods and resources used can be beneficial to the student and the teacher. I aspire to engage and connect with my students in order to illustrate the importance of applied knowledge in whatever field of study they choose. This leads students on the path to becoming self-educators while developing their practical, theoretical, and analytical skills.
I believe that ‘movement is life’ both metaphorically and literally. Movement is the language of dance and has been a means of communication and cross-cultural expression since the beginning of human existence, providing us with creative narratives about peoples’ origins, identity, experiences, and aspirations. I am a “lifist,” meaning that I find aesthetics in all of life’s experiences, which are manifested in my practice as an educator.
In regards to education in the fine arts in relation to general academic fields, there is no separation. The arts are an integral part of the overall students’ development, providing the space to apply knowledge in an individually expressive manner. The historical structure and compositional studies of the arts have their foundation in the sciences, social studies, literature and other realms of academia. An arts educator should be capable of teaching the practical and theoretical connections to their students. Education can be the key that opens all doors. Regardless of one's aspirations in life there is a level of awareness required in order to achieve success. Education reaches beyond the classroom, starting with the home and continuing to strengthen with what is learned through our lived experiences. In sharing knowledge, this process should be done in a way where students can think critically, express their creativity, and participate in learning that is hands on. Within these experiences, students should be exposed to ideas, topics, and thoughts, from outside of their cultural communities, giving them a broader sense of self in relation to the environment they exist in. This will cultivate a more worldly understanding of being and the potential for becoming a positive agent for social change. My goal as an educator is to use the arts as a platform to create an environment that will foster growth in the minds of all, including myself.
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