Culture Days @ the Library brings art forms from around the world to Toronto’s backyard
TORONTO (August 26, 2013) – The Toronto Public Library in partnership with the Neighbourhood Arts Network continues its participation in the annual Culture Days weekend for the third year in a row. This year, Culture Days @ the Library features a wide range of activities inspired by art forms and cultural traditions from around the world.
“Culture Days provides a wonderful opportunity for a variety of groups and individuals to engage with and showcase their creative work and brings artists of diverse backgrounds to new audiences who might not otherwise have the opportunity to see them,” says Pam Mountain, Branch Head at the Annette Street Library.
During the Culture Days weekend on September 27-29, 2013, Torontonians of all ages can go to their neighbourhood branch to experience activities that will take them globetrotting from a dance hall in Havana, Cuba to a martial arts studio in Kerala, India.
“It is a privilege for us to share our Turkish Cultural Heritage with our friends in the community and be part of Culture Days @ the Library,” says Evnur Taran, activity organizer for Turkish Kilim Weaving at the Maria A. Shchuka Library. “No matter what language we speak, when arts and crafts people get together they speak a common language which creates a unique friendship and bonds people together.”
To search for all Culture Days activities in your neighbourhood, including Culture Days @ the Library activities, visit on.culturedays.ca and plan your weekend using the Bright Spots Schedule presented by Sun Life Financial. For a complete listing of Culture Days @ the Library activities you can also visit www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/culturedays.
Some examples of Culture Days @ the Library activities include:
• The King’s Fury – A Tamil’s Folk Drama at Malvern Library. The ancient traditional musical art form of the north and east of Sri Lanka, Naadu Koothu, is presented in its original style by Manuel Jesudasan and group in partnership with the Tamil Literary Garden.
• Roma Dance Heritage Celebration at Flemingdon Park Library. Celebrating and exploring the Roma dance culture of diverse geographical regions around the world. Iana Komarnytska and Paromita Kar are pleased to present a public celebration of the variety and richness of Roma dance heritage.
• Re-enacting Greek Myths at Dufferin/St. Clair Library. Child volunteers from the audience re-enact famous scenes from Greek mythology, such as Perseus and the Medusa, birth of the Olympians, Odysseus and the Cyclops, adventures of Hercules, and the Trojan Horse with help from Patrick Bowman, author of Torn from Troy and Cursed by the Sea God.
• Thai Dance With Tdot Tdat at Highland Creek Library. Witness the beauty of traditional Thai dance and costumes while learning the basic movements.
• Indian Martial Arts Workshop at Bendale Library. A demonstration and workshop of kalari payat, from the jungles of South India, with movements based on animal forms, jumps, turns and kicks.
• The History of Cuban Dance Music at Parkdale Library. Take a historical tour through the music and dance of Cuba's yesteryear.
About Toronto Public Library
Toronto Public Library is one of the world's busiest urban public library systems. Every year, 19 million people visit our branches in neighbourhoods across the city and borrow 32 million items. To learn more about Toronto Public Library, visit our website at torontopubliclibrary.ca or call Answerline at 416-393-7131. To get the most current updates on what's happening at the library, follow us on Twitter @torontolibrary.
About Neighbourhood Arts Network
The Neighbourhood Arts Network is a strategic initiative of Toronto Arts Foundation. With over 1,000 members to date, we create online resources, partnerships and professional development events that help community engaged artists and organizations do what they do best: enrich Toronto and transform it into a more vibrant and livable city. www.neighbourhoodartsnetwork.org
About Culture Days Ontario
Culture Days is committed to having all Canadians in every community declaring "I Love Culture" and making culture a daily habit.
Culture Days is a collaborative, Canada-wide volunteer movement to raise the awareness, accessibility, participation and engagement of all Canadians in the arts and cultural life of their communities. Launched in 2010, Culture Days is the largest public participation movement and annual event undertaken by the arts and culture community in Canadian history. For the third annual Culture Days event in 2012, hundreds of thousands of artists, arts and cultural organizations and community groups volunteered to present nearly 7,000 activities in more than 850 Canadian cities and towns that were enjoyed by more than 1.6 million Canadians.
This year’s Culture Days weekend will take place on September 27, 28 and 29, 2013. Once again, the event will feature free, interactive activities that invite the public to participate “behind the scenes”—and to discover the world of artists, creators, historians, architects, curators, and designers at work in their community. To learn more, please visit www.culturedays.ca
Culture Days in Ontario is supported by the Ontario Arts Council, the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Government of Ontario in recognition of Celebrate the Artist Weekend.
For more details about Ontario Culture Days announcements please visit: www.on.culturedays.ca. Connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube.
For more information about Culture Days in Ontario or to coordinate interviews, please contact:
Touchwood PR
press@touchwoodpr.com
(416) 593-0777
Toronto Public Library contact:
Ana-Maria Critchley
Stakeholder Relations
Communications, Programming and Customer Engagement
amcritchley@torontopubliclibrary.ca
(416) 393-7212
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