Power, Music, and the Courage to Lead: An Evening with Marina Arsenijević
Issue 2851— July 1, 2025
You know I talk a lot about power—not as something to seize, but something to embrace. Power as presence. As voice. As vision. The power TO, not over.
That’s why I’m so thrilled to share a rare experience that brings all of that to life in a way words alone never could.
On August 25 in Washington, DC, we’re hosting an intimate VIP dinner and concert with internationally acclaimed composer and pianist Dame Marina Arsenijević.
Marina was knighted in Serbia for her efforts at peacekeeping, and in America she received the Ellis Island award for her work to achieve unity in diversity. She’ll perform the exclusive premiere of her newest multimedia work, “Tesla Rhapsody,” and offer a glimpse into the personal courage that has shaped her remarkable path.
Marina’s journey—from war torn Serbia to the global stage—is one of resilience, purpose, and artistic integrity. It exemplifies our theme of “Courage to Lead.” For that reason and in appreciation for her performances at all of our Power Up Concerts and Conferences, Marina will receive our Wear the Shirt award for 2025.
When I interviewed her for a profile in my book Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take the Lead for (Everyone’s) Good, Marina shared her belief in music’s Power to Unite:
"During the height of the civil wars and ignoring extensive political pressure, I challenged the intolerance and took the Serbian Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra to Kosovo's largest hall, the 11,000 seat Boro Ramiz Center in Prishtina, where I played both Muslim and Christian music to an appreciative standing room audience of Muslims and Christians without a single incident of violence."
Her Tesla Rhapsody is a sweeping sonic portrait of another Serbian visionary who dared to dream ahead of his time: Nikola Tesla.
Through music and multimedia, Marina brings Tesla’s brilliance and heartbreak into vivid focus. His pioneering ideas. His betrayals. His unshakable belief in a future shaped by energy, innovation—and the power of women. Tesla once predicted:
“The struggle of the female toward sex equality will end in a new sex order, with the female as superior.”
That line stops me every time. Not because I think power is a zero-sum game—but because Tesla saw what so many still resist: that the future will be different and can be better when women share in the power of leadership.
Marina will join me for a special fireside chat to share her “Courage to Lead” story the next day, August 26 which is Women’s Equality Day, as we continue the Power Up Conference.
You can choose to join:
🎶 VIP Experience — Premiere of Tesla Rhapsody by Dame Marina Arsenijević, intimate dinner with speakers and sponsors, VIP lounge at the conference, powerful connections, and the conference on August 26 areavailable as a special package.
🔥 The Conference Day August 26 will feature an Inspiring fireside chat with Marina on her “Courage to Lead” story and many other speakers and honorees, including APCO Founder and CEO Margery Krauss, a SHEposium of women’s health and wellness, prominent CNN and USA Today sports reporter Christine Brennan, Leading Men honorees, and other top speakers TBA on the top issues of the day. We’ll end with a🎤 performance by our beloved BETTY to close the conference with energy and connection—and dancing!
You can get more details and choose the conference day only or the full and fabulous VIP experience at www.thepowerupconference.com
Join us for either option. Bring your curiosity, your ambition, your courage—and let’s see how we have the Courage to Lead TOGETHER.
Explore sponsorship opportunities, exhibit opportunities, or secure group tickets as well as individual conference tickets at 👉The Power Up Conference.
GLORIA FELDT is the Cofounder and President of Take The Lead, a motivational speaker, and a global expert in women’s leadership development and DEI for individuals and companies that want to build gender balance. She is a bestselling author of five books, most recently Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take The Lead for (Everyone’s) Good. Honored as Forbes 50 Over 50, and Former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, she is a frequent media commentator. Learn more at www.gloriafeldt.com and www.taketheleadwomen.com. Find her @GloriaFeldt on all social media.