Our mission is to provide resources and support for the local Asian, South Asian, Pacific Islander American community, and increase the visibility and representation of the Asian American diaspora in Evanston’s civic, cultural and community spaces through the arts.
Speakers
Daniel Biss, Mayor of Evanston
Josina Morita, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner & Founding Chair of the Asian American Caucus
Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz,
IL State Representative
Sanjay Tailor, IL Circuit Judge
Donna Wang Su, Northwestern Farley Center & District 65 Board of Directors
Craig Likhite, Creative Manager/Recruiter, VP at Cramer Krasselt-Chicago
Melissa Raman Molitor, Director Kids Create Change, Founder Kitchen Table Stories Project & Evanston ASPA
Student Presenters:
Khantey Lim, Northwestern University & Sam Molitor, ETHS
Performances
HANA Center's Hansori
HANA Center's Hanasori
Hanasori is a Korean Pungmul group consisting of intergenerational Korean Americans based at HANA Center. Pungmul is a Korean folk music tradition that includes drumming, body movement and singing. It is rooted in the farming culture and now actively used in political protest.
Flying Fairies Dance Troupe
​Cai Wei
(Chinese Meaning: Picking Osmund)
Cai Wei is an excerpt from a Chinese classical story dance "Confucius". The scene of a group of young maidens picking osmund symbolizes the ideal world that Confucious pictured where swords were turned into ploughs and maidens danced without worry.
Balanzai
(Xinjiang Uyghur Meaning: Young Fellow)
Xinjiang is known as a land that overflows with beautiful singing and dancing. Xinjiang dance is famous for its energy and elegance. This energetic and rhythmic dance is choreographed to a love song calling for ladies’ attention.
Nayon Filipino Dance Troupe of Evanston
The Tinikling Dance is a regional dance from the Visayan Islands of the Philippines where dancers weave in and out of the clapping of bamboo poles while dancing with graceful arm and hand movements.
Bollywood & Culture Groove
Get ready to BollyGroove and Dance! Ajanta will teach some fun and simple moves to infectious Bollywood music.
Mandala Arts
Mandala Arts presents the evolving performing arts traditions of the South Asian diaspora. The traditional and ancient dances of Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi use angular and dynamic poses, mudra and complex footwork to highlight the rhythms and colors of music originating from South India. Today's performance features Laksha Dantran and a new generation of youth artists: Tara Tatineni, Akshu Sriharsha, Anku Sriharsha, Taarini Jain, Serene Khemani and Ira Pandya.
Funkadesi
Mandala Arts presents the evolving performing arts traditions of the South Asian diaspora. The traditional and ancient dances of Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi use angular and dynamic poses, mudra and complex footwork to highlight the rhythms and colors of music originating from South India. Today's performance features Laksha Dantran and a new generation of youth artists: Tara Tatineni, Akshu Sriharsha, Anku Sriharsha, Taarini Jain, Serene Khemani and Ira Pandya.
