The African Children's Choir is made up of some of the neediest and most vulnerable children in their countries. Many have lost one or both parents to poverty or disease. The African Children's Choir helps these children break away from the everyday cycle of poverty and hopelessness. Children selected to join the choir are trained at the Choir Training Academy in Kampala, Uganda where they learn song and dance as well as attend school and church. Children who join the choir between ages 7 and 11 are supported all the way through their secondary and post-secondary education. The African Children's Choir's tours of North America and Europe raise money to support the work of "Music for Life" throughout Africa. Enjoy a unique performance by these very special and gifted children!
Following a dynamic inaugural festival in 2010, with audiences tripling?expected numbers, Downtown Raleigh is gearing up to host an expanded second annual African?American Cultural Festival of Raleigh and Wake County on September 3 and 4.
The Kenya Safari Acrobats astonish audiences with their spectacular strength, speed and agility--moving with skillful, gymnastic precission! These highly trained athletes will wow you with acts which include jumping through rings of fire, a human pyramid, magic, feats of strength and even a contortionist, all while learning about Kenyan culture, history and language.
The festival?s family friendly?programming is designed to showcase the rich artistic and cultural heritage of African Americans?in North Carolina and beyond. The free two-day event will feature music, dance, and spoken word?performances, original artwork on exhibit and for sale, free interactive art activities for children, and?numerous craft and food vendors on City Plaza and along two blocks of Fayetteville Street.
The festival?s Main Stage on City Plaza will feature performances by local and national performers,?including Saturday evening headliner The Dirty Dozen Brass Band and Sunday?s closing performance by?Ivan Neville?s Dumpstaphunk. Saturday?s stage programming kicks off with an Opening Ceremony?honoring community elders led by Chuck Davis and the African American Dance Ensemble and?continues with performances by Caribbean steel drum band Sensory Expressions, Raleigh-based rap trio?Troop 41, and DC-based Go-Go legends Big Tony and Trouble Funk before closing with an 8:00?performance by the world-renowned Dirty Dozen Brass Band. Sunday afternoon?s performances begin?at 12:30 with gospel music from J. Jasper Wilkins and the Voices of Wake Chapel Church, followed by?R&B/funk group Plunky and Oneness, award-winning Jazz bassist Ben Williams and Sound Effect, and?closing at 6:00 with the new funk musical gumbo of Dumpstaphunk, led by Ivan Neville of the legendary?Neville music family.
The festival?s Family Village, on the 300 block of Fayetteville Street, will feature multiple interactive art?activities and a full stage schedule geared towards families and children. Kibibi Ajanku, the founding?Executive Director of Baltimore?s Sankofa Dance Theater and Sankofa Center for Cultural Enrichment?will coordinate free make-and-take craft activities and interactive art installations in the Family Village.
Ajanku, a seasoned veteran in teaching history and cultural traditions through art, has designed hand-on?art projects to educate children about African traditions and symbols. The Family Village stage features?performances by the African American Dance Ensemble, various spoken word artists, the amazing feats?of the Kenya Safari Acrobats and a special Sunday afternoon performance by the African Children?s?Choir ? a group of orphaned and at risk children from East Africa, given new opportunities for life through?education and music.
In addition to staged performances, the festival also focuses on the rich visual art traditions of African?Americans. A juried artist market will feature the original works of 16 local and national artists,?representing a range of artistic styles from painting to sculpture, photography, jewelry and more from 11?until 6 on Saturday and 1 until 6 on Sunday. The Triangle African American Artists Association will?present an extensive exhibition of works by professional black artists located on Charter Square,?adjacent to City Plaza. Vendors selling items ranging from clothing to collectibles and foods of every sort?will line Fayetteville and Davie Streets.
The African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh and Wake County is presented under the direction of?the African American Cultural Festival Governing Board, a committee of civic leaders appointed by the?Raleigh City Council and Wake County Board of Commissioners. For complete festival details and?activity and stage schedules, visit www.aacfralwake.org.
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