Yellow Bird Indian Dancers in Yerevan
Yellow Bird Indian Dancers, Cascade, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006
I’ve just returned from a night out in Yerevan and quite a spectacle by the Casdade — Native American Indian dancers. Unfortunately, whenever I’m behind a camera I generally forget to fully immerse myself in any show that I’m photographing, but what I did take in was impressive as well as refreshing. Of course, the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia was in attendance along with other foreign diplomats and a few hundred Armenians sitting on the steps of the Cascade.
Yellow Bird Indian Dancers
Saturday, May 27, 20:00
The Cascade, Yerevan
The US Embassy is organizing and sponsoring a Native American Indian cultural performance tour. The “Yellow Bird Indian Dancers” hail from Arizona and will tour Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. In Armenia the group will travel and perform in Yerevan, Gyumri and Ararat. You are invited to attend the Yerevan concert with your family and friends. This will be an outdoor concert, open to the public, free of charge, and appropriate for all ages. No tickets are necessary; seating is on a first-come, first-served basis on the Cascade steps.
The Yellow Bird Indian Dancers are respected in America and around the world for continuing the traditions of ancient cultures through their family. In their dance, in the sharing of eternal wisdom through storytelling, and in their preservation of traditional Apache craftworks, they sustain ageless Native American art forms so that they may be shared with the people of today and tomorrow. The U.S. Embassy is proud to bring the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers to Armenia so that they may mingle the ancient and beautiful traditions of the first peoples of America with the equally ancient and beautiful traditions of Armenia.
For more information about the group go to: http://www.yellowbirdindiandancers.com/
Yellow Bird Indian Dancers, Cascade, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Hetq Online 2006
I’ll try to get more photographs together for tomorrow’s Hetq Online.
Nessuna as well as Zarchka were also at the event, but because the latter is facing exams at present, only the former has posted something on yesterday’s event, although with a twist.
http://nessuna.blogsome.com/2006/05/28/native-indians-and-rabiz/
Comment by Onnik — May 28, 2006 @ 10:29 pm
For any Georgian readers out there, the US Embassy inGeorgia says that the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers are due to perform in Marneuli, Telavi, Gori and Tbilisi from 30 May to 3 June.
http://georgia.usembassy.gov/events/2006/event20060519YellowBird.htm
I’d guess they’ll be in Azerbaijan soon after.
Comment by Onnik — May 28, 2006 @ 11:30 pm
The one thing that put me off about the event and led me to leave before it finished was the showing off by the Armenian musicians who took to the stage in an invitation from the Yellow Bird ensemble. Their antics overpowered the Yellow Bird musical performance and as far as I am concerned was totally uncalled for. It is not unusual to hear the dhol and zurna pounding and blaring in unison at Armenian folk events or even in restaurants throughout Yerevan, and their presence at the event was totally incomprehensible to me. Why ruin a unique cultural event presented by a society so far removed from Armenian culture? The intent was to present something that Armenians do not hear and see regularly and generally will probably not have another chance to enjoy. In this case I didn’t understand the cross-culture exchange, at least in this form, as the Armenian musical bit should have been significantly downplayed, with the Armenians never letting the Yellow Bird performers to yield the spotlight. For that reason alone I was disappointed. Armenians need to be wholly open to foreign cultures without tainting them with their own.
Comment by Christian — May 30, 2006 @ 11:04 am
Yeah, Zarchka mentioned to me that aspect of the performance and the fact that the audience didn’t applaud or dance during most of the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers set, but of course got too carried away by the Armenian bit. That’s a pity, but one guesses that this was the first time 99 percent of the audience ever saw or heard Native American Indian culture.
Still, as long as the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers didn’t feel offended by this and enjoyed the fusion of cultures, no biggie. Will be interesting to hear if something similar happens in Azerbaijan and Georgia and how the dances are received there. Personally, I enjoyed something different for a change. More of the same in the future, please.
Comment by Onnik — May 30, 2006 @ 11:35 am
Whether or not the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers from the U.S.A. felt offended by the lack of “kooldooragan (as they say in Armenia)” or cultured behavior is something only they would know. As for the behavior of the audience, according to what has been reported, I cannot help but think of the countless times, over the years, Armenian groups from Armenia have been brought to Chicago to perform, and the enthusiastic and respectful manner in which they have been received, treated.
If only this type of behavior could have been shown to the Yellow Bird Indian Dancers– guests in the country called Armenia. And, maybe a little humbleness too.
Comment by Knarik O. Meneshian — May 31, 2006 @ 10:09 pm
Nice photos….At least Armenian get acquinted with American native culture.
Congragulation
Comment by Garo — May 31, 2006 @ 11:50 pm
NICE!!! I admire the Natives and their culture/traditions. Nice photos, too. Thanks.
Comment by Anarchistian — June 1, 2006 @ 1:34 pm