Our story began with the Peace Child musical, which has been performed in 40+ countries and at the UN General Assembly. Our 1986 tour delivered a historic US-USSR performance to transform minds from war to peace. 12 states hosted the musical, including New York, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington DC – and across Russia. This began the legacy of 10,000 global performances.

Today, the musical features actors from Russia, China, US, France, UK, matching that 1980s vision with new vigour to facilitate dialogue across borders for peace. Our surviving founders remain at the helm, providing forty years of mentorship to our community — including new trustees and a Youth Advisory Board. The movement is facilitated by artists, actors and policy makers who use performance to connect with minds and hearts.

Founders 
Peace Child International was born through a unique collaboration between a group of extraordinary friends who believed in the power of song to bridge global divides. 

* Bernard Benson: The philosopher and author of The Peace Book. Published in 1980 and translated into 20+ languages, it became a global bestseller and led to the creation of the first Peace Child musical.
* David Gordon: The musical heart of our story. A gifted composer and manager to his brother, Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam), David wrote the iconic song, Child for a Day.
* Michael and Eirwen Harbottle: Eirwen, a former broadcaster and actress, and her husband, Brigadier Michael Harbottle (UN Chief of Staff in Cyprus), led the World Disarmament Campaign when they booked the Royal Albert Hall for the first performance.
* David Woollcombe and Rosey Simonds: Their work transformed a single musical into a worldwide network, coordinating complex international theatre tours, educational programmes and securing our place in global youth advocacy.

Peace Child International

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