September 28, 2021 | Special Edition
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You're invited to Ouvèti ['opening' in Haitian Creole]
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Saturday, October 2, 2021 |
Urban Media Arts (UMA) and the City of Malden invite you to a Haitian Folkloric dance class (1:30pm) and a site-specific dance performance (3:30pm) brought to Malden by Jean Appolon Expressions, an acclaimed contemporary dance company with a vision to use Haitian-folkloric dance to cultivate hope and healing towards a more expressive and socially just world.
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Photo by Olivia Moon Photography. |
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1:30-3:00 pm | Haitian Folkloric dance class with live drumming
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3:00-3:30 pm | Live drumming, mingling and local artisan shopping
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3:30-4:30 pm | Ouvèti Dance Performance
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Photo by Olivia Moon Photography. |
Gather Together
This offering of Haitian Folkloric dance as a class and community experience is the perfect opportunity to gather to acknowledge and celebrate Haiti, heal, and be together as support and community in the aftermath of the earthquake and Tropical Storm Grace impacting Haiti this summer.
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#CelebrateHaitians Directory
If you are a Haitian nonprofit, artist, performer, business owner, please come and be added to our #CelebrateHaitians directory.
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Cost: FREE with all donations going to support Earthquake relief efforts in the southwest of Haiti through partner organization ACEGA. ACEGA’s mission is first to accompany youth in Jérémie and around Grand’Anse, and to contribute to the education sector, particularly through arts and culture.
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Interested in volunteering or supporting this event? Join a team of Malden residents to greet attendees, catch media, and set up. |
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Dancers practicing for Ouvèti in Malden City Hall Plaza. Video by Amanda Hurley.
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About Jean Appalon Expressions |
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Jean Appolon Expressions (JAE) is a contemporary dance company deeply rooted in Haitian-folkloric culture that nurtures a global community through professional performances, educational opportunities, dance training, and the joy of movement for people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds. JAE shares the liberating power of Haitian-folkloric dance to cultivate hope and healing towards a more expressive and socially just world.
Aside from offering professional performances, education to all ages, Haitian connection, JAE builds community through its classes and workshops with community organizations in the Greater Boston area and gives movers and thinkers of all backgrounds the opportunity to learn about Haitian culture and their own healing by participating in dance and conversation.
JAE has received numerous honors and more recently, was one of 2021 Grantees of The MAP Fund, supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
JEA's Artistic Director is Jean Appalon, a Malden resident. You can learn more about Jean and his work below.
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"This short documentary film delves into the making of Traka, Appolon’s most recent production. Traka explores how dance, culture, and community are pathways to healing for trauma survivors. The production was created through healing community workshops and is based primarily on Appolon’s personal story of trauma and the role of dance in his healing and success."
Amplifier Projects at the Gardner highlight change-makers working towards social justice through the arts.
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About the Famous Dance Class |
Watch this short documentary (2006) by Grete Viddal about Jean Appolon's famous Haitian Folkloric dance class. Jean has been teaching this class for more than two decades. It continues to draw a crowd - people of all ages, ethnicities and levels of dance skill. On October 2, at 1:30pm, this very class will be taught in Malden. |
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Download and share a flyer. Click for PDF in English or Haitian Creole. |
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Download Haitian Creole Version |
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UMA (Urban Media Arts) is an interconnected hub of creativity, dialog and evolving community, centering around media, arts and culture, and proudly based in Malden, MA. |
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This special issue of UMAverse was produced by Kamila Rodrigues. |
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