Frickin' small world, I'm telling you.
First, one of the musicians tech'ing, with the group The Fourth Stream, after almost an hour of being in the space, asks, "Hey, do you know Zehra Fazal?" I say yes, adding a "I thought you looked familiar" afterward.
Turns out we met at a birthday dinner for one of the most self-actualized working artists I know, and I've had the pleasure of working with in various capacities (you should check out her website).
Later I see Megan, whom I had just grabbed lunch with a week or so ago, who has recently taken on the position of Communications with Sulu DC.
Then, halfway through the set of the closing performers, SNRG, my kuya Ricky greets me with a fistbump in one hand, while is filming with the other.
I've known this guy as long as I've been live, via my cousin Kat's side of the fam.
Anyway, that's the AAPI community for you.
And it's been fun, with two events down as Sulu DC's resident stage manager, with my trusty sidekick, Eamonn, ASM'ing for the evening again.
Performances were as diverse in disciplines as the audience was in heritage, as usual, which is the pretty neat thing. I hear artists and art forms that I might not normally be exposed to, due to my own predispositions, as well as limited resources temporally and financially.
And they include active local artists. The Fourth Stream, mentioned earlier, actually has another performance which the Pink Line Project has listed, coming up this Friday at Bloombars.
They also included out-of-the-area artists, like the amazing Jennifer Cendaña Armas, who bussed in from NYC.
Other artists included Poet José Padua (check out his blog) and one of Sulu DC's founders, Alex Cena, who not only is a coordinator at Asian American Lead, but also had a posse of youth he mentors and teaches, performing some pieces with him.
MC'ing the evening was another of Sulu DC's founders, Brian Wang, and bringing the whole evening together on the 1's & 2's was the Pinstriped Rebel. I'm sorry, but someone who can bridge the variety of artforms and heritage, mixing in everything from cultural classics to Filipino funk/rap...let's just say that she's pretty awesome.
Definitely check out the Event Calendar, and see if there's an evening you'd consider checking out. Just come with open mind and heart, and whether you're of the AAPI community, or affiliated with it in some other way, I promise you will not be disappointed.
- J Street Jr
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Showing posts with label AAPI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AAPI. Show all posts
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Sulu DC One Year Anniversary Show
An amazing night!! Okay, first off, Sulu DC is a grassroots oriented network, aimed at providing Asian-American and Pacific Islander artists a home and a venue to present their work.
It was fashioned after the Sulu series in New York, which (after 5 years) had its final show this past September, which one of Sulu DC's founders, Simone Jacobson, blogged about for the Lantern Review.
Simone, incidentally, is a classmate, not just from my time in UMD's Dance program, but AU's Arts Management program as well.
I actually got to speak and present some of my own work (via DVD), at a Sulu DC event sometime this past spring, at U St Music Hall. Tonight, I was invited but had to turn down the spot. Instead, I offered to volunteer and ended up being Simone's Assistant Stage Manager.
For the One Year Anniversary show, Sulu DC returned to the Artisphere, where it had its October show, but which had also recently opened. While there's no official website, you can "like" the venue's Facebook Page.
Before the actual event even started, audience members were treated during the pre-show reception in the lobby, to beats dropped by The Pinstriped Rebel, and a performance by members of the Dhoonya Dance Performance Company.
As the audience made their ways to the seats, the Nen Daiko drummers welcomed them.
After this, our fabulous MC, Regie Cabico, spoken word poet and co-founder of Sulu DC & Sulu Series (NYC), entered, singing in true Filipino/karaoke form to Don't Rain on My Parade.
He welcomed the audience and introduced the next performance, Paige Hernandez, who presented excerpts from her one woman show, Paige in Full. You can actually catch the full piece as part of Intersections at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, in March (2011).
Awards were then presented, the Audience and Community Partner, followed by a high-energy performance by PaperDoll recently returned from a tour in China, which featured a performance at this year's World Expo, which closed out the first half of the evening.
After intermission, Phil Good Band kicked of the second act (you can check out their FB Page). The Artist of the Year award was then handed to Yellow Rage, who, as part of their acceptance, were then prompted to honor us with a performance, which was most excellent.
Gayle Isa, the guest speaker for the evening, and Founder & Executive Director of the Asian Arts Initiative took the stage to share some words and thanks, followed by an intense performance by slam poet Beau Sia.
The final pair of awards were handed out, for Arts Education of the Year, and Community Contribution.
Overall an excellent night, and an amazing one given that it's only been a year and I can remember attending the first Sulu DC event in a church basement. In addition Simone & Kuya Regie, props have to go to Jenny C. Lares, Alex Cena, & Brian Wang.
Looking forward to seeing what the next year brings!!
J Street Jr
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