Our second day at ArtsFest
has been fun-filled. We wanted to attend a few events that were going on at the
same time so we decided to split up. Corey chose to visit the Orisirisi African
Folklore event; while I decided to spend the day with mother nature and catch
the children having a blast racing their painted rubber ducks for prizes. Mead
Gardens put on an event called ‘The Great Duck Derby.’ From the website (www.meadgarden.org): “Get in the
race! Come to Mead Garden for another fun filled day at the races. See hundreds
of little rubber ducks as they race through the pond while the crowd cheers the
lucky ducks across the finish line to win cool prizes!” I would love to hear
from the families who attended if you have pictures of your rubber duckies to
share with us. We welcome comments about your day as well. I can’t wait until
the next race, I’ll be sure to bring all of my nieces and nephews with me.
The first story is about the African drummers and then
about the garden. I was able to transform their words to my ears from my eyes
to my fingers to write about one of the best stories I’ve ever heard about
music, just by listening to Corey retell his experience at Orisirisi and watching the video footage he captured.
Orisirisi African Folklore performed at Orlando Public
Library on Saturday, February 18 for ArtsFest.
According to their website (www.orisirisi.com), Orisirisi is one of the world’s
most preeminent performing arts company, was created in 1986 with the expressed
purpose of sharing both the beauty and poignancy of African life and culture.
Co-produced, directed, and performed by a husband and wife
team comprised of Nigerian born folk-artist Adetutu Harrell and Don Harrell, a
music scholar and performing artist, who is a life-long veteran of stage and
screen. Orisirisi (a Yoruba word pronounced o-re-she-re-she) utilizes varied
artistic forms to impart folk-knowledge and experiences to and for their
audiences.
The duo shared their folktales, legends, and myths from the
far corners of Africa with the audience. Their performance is a celebration of
music, culture and the recreation of the African storytelling tradition;
including drum and percussion instruments, audience participation, and fun
learning for the entire family.
They presented the rich history by sharing with us that the
stories are traditionally told during the evening by elders. The stories always
had a way of explaining why things were the way that they were as well as
teaching lessons about the difference between right and wrong, how to be a good
friend, how to respect yourself and others, and especially to respect their
elders. The stories included the playing of drums and singing and funny voices,
which was very entertaining to watch. They wrapped up each story with a moral
or cultural value.
Orisirisi shared a few more stories
with the audience on Saturday’s celebration of ArtsFest. I will leave it up to you to reach out to Orisirisi to
hear more of their fantastic folklore. They enjoy teaching about their culture
and were an educational and entertaining way to learn about the world around us
and it’s rich history.
Over at Mead Gardens, I was not able
to film the race itself. I decided to stay and capture the
beauty of the nature surrounding me while a few of the festivities were still
happening. There were families all around who were having fun and enjoying the
atmosphere of the Gardens. Not far from where the race took
place, I found the amphitheater where symphonies play music and couples get
married.
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