We are excited to present our Second Annual Sankofa series which will take place throughout this autumn 2021! As part of these events between September and November, our crowning jewel includes Voices of the Ancestors, a musical performance with handmade life sized puppets and masks, crafts, and healing ceremony for the waters on OCTOBER 2nd at Kingston Point Beach. (Raindate Oct 3)
Honoring the voices of the ancestors: How the Gourds Got Their Voices is a life-affirming story written and told by Caru Thompson and brought to life with the visionary puppets of Rosendale's Redwing Blackbird Theater and our community. Members of Good Gourd, a local singing and percussion group celebrating African-American heritage and culture, will also be an essential part of the ceremony.
“Sankofa” is from the Twi language of Ghana and teaches us to reach back to our roots to recover and gather the best of what the past has to teach us, so we can move forward with our full potential.
Indeed, whatever we have lost, forgotten or been stripped of, can be revived, preserved, sustained, and honored. Sankofa. Join us this fall and on Oct 2nd for our culminating performance at Kingston Point!
Shekere making, storytelling, puppetry, percussion music and performance, dance, traditional food, basketmaking, quiltmaking and more will ensure that myriad voices and forms of expression are represented, heard, and uplifted.
JOIN US for an unforgettable event of celebration and healing at Kingston Point Beach on Oct.2nd!
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON OTHER DAYS’ EVENTS of SANKOFA and experience inspiring hands-on creative workshops throughout the Hudson Valley this fall, 2021
Sankofa, while focused on traditional West African and African-American crafts and arts, is inclusive to all cultures, bringing diverse peoples together to learn, be inspired, experience the joy and healing of craft, and dream into a more compassionate future together.
Local organizations and artists in partnership with Sankofa throughout this fall series include Circle Creative Collective, MyKingstonKids, Seasoned Delicious, Harambee and others. Workshops include an African roots culinary class and talk, an Orishas Dance class, a sweetgrass basket weaving class with a 5th generation Gullah Geechee weaver, a community weaving project, a basket making workshop and much more.
From Caru's story, How the Gourds Got Their Voices
"...every time we play a gourd, it is the voices of the ancestors we are shaking free, helping to awaken and rise up. When we play the gourd, the ancestors can sing up to the heavens again, out to nature. They call down the spirit of the gods and call forward the healing of the community. And every time, we each take a little less for ourselves and give a little more for the community. In turn, greed shrinks and our Aṣẹ grows.
And that is how gourds got their voices..."
WHEN: Oct. 2nd, 2021 2pm-5pm RAINDATE: Oct. 3rd 2pm-5pm
WHERE: Kingston Point Beach
HOW: This is a DONATION BASED EVENT. Suggested Donation: $1-$30 per person (kids under 10 free) CLICK HERE to register! (Pay what you can or pay it forward)
Please bring a flower from your garden or elsewhere (picked with gratitude) and a musical shaker (if you have one)- but not obligatory! Thank you!
Meet Carol “Caru” Thompson…
