Yahaya Kamate
From the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race:
The Annual Cultural Heritage Festival, one the region’s most exciting and diverse events, is returning for its second season to Maplewood Memorial Park on June 6 from 11 am to 5 pm (rain date June 7).
Produced by the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race, this free event celebrates the culture, arts, and community spirit of the region by bringing together a variety of talented performers who showcase the many cultures in our community and throughout NJ.
The 2015 Cultural Heritage Festival features a great lineup of multicultural performers, including African drumming by The Kamate Traders, the amazing Japanese Drumming group Taiko Zuko, Haitian performer Gigi DuVan, The Livingston Chinese School Lion Dancers and musicians, New Jersey Steel Rhythms, a Caribbean steel drum band, Israeli Belly dancer Sigal, Exotic Indian dancing by Creations Dance Academy, The Garden State International Folk Dancers, Cobra, a music group of Columbia High School students, Celtic music from the Driscoll and Smith Band, hip hop and jazz funk from LaChaney Dance Performing Arts Company, and much more. Seating is informal; bring blankets or folding chairs for seating on the lawn.
In addition to the live performances, there will be family-friendly activities throughout the day. Plus, the Festival includes a marketplace of vendors with a variety of international foods, arts, and crafts.
The Community Coalition on race is a nationally recognized local nonprofit organization that is dedicated to racial integration and true inclusion of all peoples. It is committed to building communities in which people of different races and ethnicities live together, interact, form friendships and participate fully in the life of the community.
Sharing cultural traditions are so important to developing understanding among people of different backgrounds. The goal of the Cultural Heritage Festival is to provide a family-friendly venue to celebrate the vast diversity of the region and to inspire everyone to learn more about the richness of their neighbors’ heritages.
For more information on the Festival, visit www.twotowns.org/chf.
