The 10 th Annual Global DanceFest, presented by the VSA North Fourth Art Center and NewArt New Mexico, returns with its spring iteration. This weekend, see The Good Dance—dakar/brooklyn by New York dance company Reggie Wilson/Fist & Heel Performance Group and Andreya Ouamba/Compagnie 1 er Temps, from Senegal via Congo-Brazzaville. What does all that mean? An explosion of movement that examines the cultures of the American Mississippi River and African Congo River area and explores their similarities. Performances at the South Broadway Cultural Center (1025 Broadway SE) are at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Next weekend, the N4th Theater (4904 Fourth Street NW) hosts A Constellation of Bones and excerpts from Kahi:wi and Here on Earth , by Canadian dancer and choreographer Santee Smith and the Kaha:wi Dance Theatre. The three pieces explore Native dance, the lives of indigenous women and connections to Mother Earth. Shows are Friday, April 16, and Saturday, April 17, at 8 p.m. Tickets for all of the above performances are $15, $10 for students and seniors. Purchase them at vsartsnm.org or call 344-4542 for reservations and information.
Culture Shock: To Sir, With Love To Sir, With Love
Those of us who grew up pre-Internet had the opportunity to experience something most kids today don’t: pen pals. Receiving a letter in the mail from someone a little like you from a faraway place was an exciting, formative experience. Project PeacePal agrees. The idea behind the organization is that if we get to know people from other cultures, religions and countries as friends, it becomes much more difficult to see them as the "other," as the "enemy." To that end, PeacePal pairs American students with their counterparts in such countries as Afghanistan, Ghana, Guatemala and Palestine. On Friday, April 9, assist the group by joining Project PeacePal at the KiMo Theatre (423 Central NW) for a world premiere of Stealing the Light , a documentary about the work of one Afghani man to rebuild a school in his Helmand Province hometown. The event also includes a concert by Iraqi-American oudist Rahim AlHaj, a silent auction and a raffle. Tickets are $25. For VIPs (tickets $55), a reception with Afghani food and a chance to meet filmmaker Aimie Burns and the film’s subject, Dr. Mohammad Khan Kharoti, is included. The VIP reception begins at 5:30 p.m., and the main event begins at 7 p.m. For information on tickets and what PeacePal does, go to peacepal.org.
