WEEKEND 4
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS
NOVELLUS THEATER
Saturday, June 23, 3pm and 8pm
Sunday, June 24, 3pm
Dance from Appalachia (US), China, Hungary, India,
Mexico, Middle East, Peru, Tahiti, and Zimbabwe
HONORING ZENÓN BARRÓN
The Malonga Casquelourd Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to choreographer, performer, and Mexican dance master Zenón Barrón, Artistic Director of Ensambles Ballet Folklórico de San Francisco during the Saturday night, June 23 performance at the Novellus Theater.
Ensambles Ballet Folklórico de San Francisco, Mexico
A joyous trio of dances narrates the rhythms of village life from working in the fields with dynamic unfurling skirts to a town square celebration with a percussive all-male dance on tarimas, or platforms
Vishwa Shanthi Dance Academy, India
In a moving bharatanatyam piece, Queen Shantala Devi's devotion and passion for dance magically give life to sculptures in an abandoned temple and completes it when her own image joins them for eternity
Barbary Coast Cloggers, Appalachia, US
A medley of boisterous Appalachian clogging captures the spirit of early American settlers' camaraderie and showmanship with a confluence of movements from the Irish jig, to English countrydances, to traditional African steps and rhythms
Shabnam, Middle East and US
Quiver, glimmer, flutter, and shimmer! An innovative baladi belly dance inspired by the undulating swells of the Red Sea features fluid, rippling movements reflecting the grace and power of the sea
Te Mana O Te Ra, Tahiti
Highlighting female strength and determination, Vahines de Tahiti represents how Tahitian women embody Queen Pomare IV, Madeline Moua (Queen of the Heiva, or festival), Hina (goddess of love and the moon), and Pele (goddess of fire, rage, and passionate love)
Chinyakare Ensemble, Zimbabwe
This harvest dance from the Shona people of Zimbabwe teaches the importance of family and community through a cautionary tale danced while balancing seed-filled baskets on their heads, as ancestral spirits are invited to visit and share their wisdom
Chinese Performing Arts of America, China
In honor of the Year of the Dragon, black light technology highlights this symbolic dragon dance, creating a hypnotizing and powerful performance where only the dragon can be seen in the darkness, whirling and twisting ten feet off the floor
Eszterlánc Hungarian Folk Ensemble, Hungary
From the Sárköz region in southwest Hungary comes Sárközyi Ugrós, or Jumping Dance, showcasing joyful, high steps in a jubilant men's stick dance paired with an all-female bottle dance, performed in intricate handmade, full-skirted costumes native to the village of Decs
De Rompe y Raja Cultural Association, Peru
Paying tribute to the legacy left in Peru by women of African descent, this dynamic Afro-Peruvian zamacueca has spawned a multitude of dance styles throughout the Americas and has been a unifying force in Latin America, mixing African, indigenous, and Spanish cultures
