Multi Arts Amherst!

weekly Afro-Cuban dance classes in NoHo!

marisa — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 23:46:24 +0000

For people who are enchanted by Afro-Cuban rhythms and dances we are offering ongoing classes in Afro-Cuban folkloric dance. Join us as we learn a variety of folkloric dances from the Yoruba and Bantú cultures; and social dances such as Rumba and Comparsa.

Tuesdays 8:00 – 9:30 PM
Northeast American School of Dance
25 Main Street, Northampton MA
(on 4th floor; above the Fitzwilly’s restaurant)

Each class includes a warm-up; instruction in basic movements; creation of choreographies out of the basic steps; and discussion of the historical and cultural roots of the various Afro-Cuban dances. The classes always conclude with a traditional dance circle where each dancer takes a turn to put what he or she has learned into practice by dancing before the drums.

These high energy classes are accompanied by a battery of live drummers from Grupo Folklórico Palo Santo playing authentic Afro-Cuban instruments and traditional rhythms. The musical accompaniment for the class also includes the traditional song repertoires that belong to each rhythm and dance.

These ongoing classes are open to dancers of all different ability and experience levels. No previous formal dance training is necessary. Newcomers are always welcome.

$12 per class; or $80 for an 8 class package (good for three months)

For more information visit our website at http://www.GrupoPaloSanto.com

About the teacher:
Miguel Periche is from Holguín, Cuba, where he grew up immersed in Afro-Cuban culture and dance; and performed with the Conjunto Folklórico Okú. Since arriving in the US Miguel has performed with the SonRisa ensemble in New York; and has taught Salsa dance in the Smith College Dance Department, the Northampton Country Club, and at the East Street Studios in Hadley. Miguel is the principal dancer in Grupo Folklórico Palo Santo.

What Would Jesus Buy?

marisa — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 00:16:38 +0000

**For 4 Days Only**

WHAT WOULD JESUS BUY?
Morgan Spurlock presents a film by Ron VanAlkemade

December 21-25
Amherst Cinema Arts Center
click here to buy tickets

Watch the trailer & download the choir’s subversive song lyrics at: http://wwjbmovie.com

Stop counting down shopping days ‘til Christmas! Take back the season for friends, family and laughter! What Would Jesus Buy? invites you to drop out of the frenzy and STOP SHOPPING! In the season when even newscasters tell you to “shop yourself silly,” Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Gospel Choir take over the Mall of America, hold a funeral for small-town America near WalMart’s corporate headquarters, and connect with people across the country — all in an effort to stop the *SHOPOCALYPSE!

*Shopocalypse [shah-PAW-kuh-lips] — Noun.
The end of mankind from consumerism, over-consumption and the fires of eternal debt.

December 21-25
Amherst Cinema Arts Center
28 Amity Street
Amherst, MA 01002
413-253-2547

Tickets: $5.50 – $8.50

University Dancers Concert

teana — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 01:30:05 +0000

This is it, the weekend of the University Dancers Concert, a high-energy, diverse program that shows off the talent of its dancers. This concert has great sense of theme and vision, featuring choreography by Ron K. Brown and José Limón as well as Five College Dance Faculty members Billbob Brown, Richard Jones (former), Marilyn Sylla, and Tom Vacanti. Performed pieces range from African-inspired rhythms to contemporary ballet. This concert will whisk away any winter blues with its vibrancy. Don’t miss this opportunity to see an incredible performance!

University Dancers – In Concert
Dates: Thursday, Dec. 6
Friday, Dec. 7
Saturday, Dec. 8
Time: 8:00 p.m.
Place: Bowker Auditorium
University of Massachusetts Amherst

Please make reservations at the Fine Arts Center Box Office: 413-545-2511

Diaspora Poetry Concert

teana — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 00:24:08 +0000

La Causa presents one of the the largest annual ALANA (African, Latino, Asian, Native American) spoken-word poetry events in the Northeast.

THE 10TH ANNUAL VOICES FOR THE VOICELESS:
DIASPORA POETRY CONCERT

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2007
5:30 PM – 10 PM
KEEFE CAMPUS CENTER- FRIEDMANN ROOM
AMHERST COLLEGE

Dinner from La Veracruzana will be served at 5:45 p.m. and the concert will be begin promptly at 6:30 p.m.

The eight world-renowned poets include Louis Reyes Rivera, Tony Medina, Talaam Acey, Shaggy Flores, Fay Chiang, Jahipster, Bao Phi and Mariposa.

THIS EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

Voices for the Voiceless

teana — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 23:59:07 +0000

Five-College Dialogue Between National Community Poets and Academics

Opening Ceremony to the 10th Annual Voices for the Voiceless: Poetry and Spoken Word as Acts of Freedom

Date: Friday, December 7, 2007
Time: 8 p.m.
Location: Fayerweather Hall Room 113
Amherst College

The idea behind this project is to expose the five college area to the diversity, complexity, and Power of the national ALANA (African, Latino, Asian, Native American) poetry Scene. Join the poets performing in Voices, who will discuss the role of poetry and spoken word and its relationship to community activism and social justice.

Appetizers and Refreshments from La Veracruzana will be served.

UMASS Public Forum: Costumizing Racism

teana — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 03:04:17 +0000

Costumizing Racism: Power and Privilege in Academic Spaces

A public forum organized by the UMass Civil Rights Committee of the GEO/ Graduate Employment Organization

WEDNESDAY, DEC 5, 2007 @ 3 p.m.
UMass Campus Center Room 101

The Civil Rights Committee of the Graduate Employment Organization is hosting a public forum to discuss racist displays, the invisibility of minorities, and the role of the institution regarding racism. UMASS faculty will comprise a panel from which short presentations will be made with a discussion to follow.

This forum is a community event and everyone is encouraged to attend. Because of recent events at Smith and UMASS, the Civil Rights Committee has decided to hold this public forum so that our community can dialog in a safe and open place. The Civil Rights Committee was formed to support students with grievances concerning racism, sexual harassment and gender bias.

Women & Gender/Film Studies Lecture:”Return of the Bad Girl”

teana — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 23:12:44 +0000

The Program for the Study of Women and Gender and the Film Studies Program at Smith College are pleased to sponsor a visit by independent filmmaker, media artist, and activist Yau Ching (Associate Professor of Cultural Studies at Lingnan University in Hong Kong)

Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Time: 8:00-10:30 pm
Location: Seelye Hall 201, Smith College
Preview Screening: “Ho Yuk (Let’s Love Hong Kong)” – 87 min
Followed by Q&A with filmmaker Yau Ching

Thursday, December 6, 2007
Time: 7:00-8:30 pm
Location: Seelye Hall 201, Smith College
Annual Kixie Denison Fieldman ’53 Lecture
“Return of the Bad Girl”
This public lecture by Yau Ching will include a screening of the short
film “I’m Starving” and allow time for a Q & A with the filmmaker.

Yau Ching is a prolific film/video artist and writer. Her work focuses
on issues on migration, sexuality, (post)coloniality and marginalized
subjectivity. Using examples from her diverse body of work which crosses
genres including documentary, narrative and experimental, and weaves
between single-channel and installation, this talk will discuss various
strategies of exploring cultural, political, local and inter-local
issues through the processes of artistic conceptualization and creation.
A graduate of the Whitney Program in studio art, Yau Ching received her
BA in comparative literature from University of Hong Kong, MA in media
studies from New School University, and PhD in media arts from
University of London. Her film/video work includes “Ho Yuk” (Let?s
Love Hong Kong) (Grand Prix for Fiction, Figueira da Foz International
Film Festival, Portugal), “I?m Starving” (Silver Prize, Brno16 Film
Festival, Czech Republic), and “Flow” (Special Jury Prize, Image Forum,
Japan), among others. Author of six books, her writings include, Filming
Margins: Tang Shu Shuen, A Forgotten Hong Kong Woman Director (2004).

Jean Marie Teno this Monday!!

teana — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 00:58:23 +0000

Cameroonian filmmaker and visiting Copeland Fellow, Jean Marie Teno, will be talking about his work . The presentation will take the form of an informal retrospective of his films with clips and an opportunity to interact with the audience. The presentation will be followed by a reception at the Mead Art Museum among the paintings, photographs, and activities that are part of the Collaborative Art project by Wendy Ewald and Brett Cook.

Monday, December 4 @ 7:30
Merrill Science Center Rm. 2
Amherst College

African Folk Opera- The Palmwine Drinkard

teana — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 00:32:20 +0000

THE PALMWINE DRINKARD

By Kola Ogunmola

Directed by Dr. Bode Omojola
Featuring
Mark Ojo, Singer
Bisi Adeleke, Yoruba Master Drummer
Esi Nicholl, Choreographer
MHC Students of Music 166

Produced by
Departments of Music and Theatre

With support from
The Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund
The Elizabeth Kennan Fund

M O U N T H O L Y O K E C O L L E G E
Sunday, December 9 @ 2 & 8 pm
Rooke Theatre

Admission: $5 General $3 Student Box Office 413-538-2406

Robert Farris Thompson’s Lecture

teana — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 02:25:16 +0000

The Black Studies Department at Amherst College presents

Robert Farris Thompson
(Colonel John Trumbell Professor of the History of Art at Yale University)

Topic: “Eshu-Elegba in the Atlantic Context”

Thursday, November 29, 2007 @ 4:30 PM
Pruyne Lecture Hall (Fayerweather 115)
Amherst College

Robert Farris Thompson, starting with an article on Afro-Cuban dance and music published in 1958, has devoted his life to the serious study of the art history of the Afro-Atlantic world. His first book, Black Gods and Kings, was a close iconographic reading of the art history of the forty million Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria. He has published texts on the structure and meaning of African dance, African Art in Motion, and a reader on the art history of the Black Americas, Flash of the Spirit, which has remained in print since its publication in 1983. Thompson has published two books on the bark cloth art of the pygmies of the Ituri Forest, plus the first international study of altars of the Black Atlantic world, Face of the Gods and most recently Tango: The Art History of Love. In addition, he has published an introduction to the diaries of Keith Haring, studies the art of José Bedia and Guillermo Kuitca and has been anthologized fifteen times. Certain of his works have been translated into French, German, Flemish and Portuguese. He is also the Master of Timothy Dwight College at Yale.