Originating in the 1970s as an innovative, cutting-edge alter-native to the established Adelaide Festival, the Adelaide Fringe today enjoys a synergistic relationship with its sister festival, contributing to the vibrant atmosphere of this Aus-tralian city during the autumn months. Held biennially for a three-week period, the Fringe features the latest in the underground and experimental arts created by independent artists from Australia, Europe, and the United States. The program includes comedy, dance, film, music, physical the-ater, dramatic theater, and visual arts. Audience attendance in 2002 was nearly 200,000, making the Adelaide Fringe one of the largest and most popular arts festivals in the world.
CONTACT:
Adelaide Fringe
P.O. Box 3242
Rundle Mall
265 Rundle St., 1st Fl.
Adelaide, South Australia 5000 Australia
011-61-8-8100-2000; fax: 011-61-8-8100-2020
buzz@adelaidefringe.com.au
Friday, May 22, 2009
Adelaide Festival
Adelaide, South Australia, metamorphosed from an isolated, culturally deprived city to a major center of art and culture worldwide, thanks to a group of visionary businessmen who originated this biennial festival of the arts in 1960. In 2004 the Adelaide Festival program included more than 50 per-formances, exhibitions, and workshops in dance, music, film, theater, opera, and the visual arts, featuring artists from all over the world. A writers’ week is also featured. Events in the festival take place in the Festival Theatre, parks, churches, the Adelaide Town Hall, and other locations.
See also Adelaide Fringe Festival
CONTACT:
Adelaide Festival
P.O. Box 8116
Station Arcade
105 Hindley St.
Adelaide, South Australia 5000
Australia 011-61-8-8216-4444; fax: 011-61-8-8216-4455
afa@adelaidefestival.net.au
See also Adelaide Fringe Festival
CONTACT:
Adelaide Festival
P.O. Box 8116
Station Arcade
105 Hindley St.
Adelaide, South Australia 5000
Australia 011-61-8-8216-4444; fax: 011-61-8-8216-4455
afa@adelaidefestival.net.au
Adar Parab
Adar Parab is one of the "sacred name days" in the Zororas-trian calendar, where the name of the day and the name of the month coincide. Adar, the spiritual being or yazata for whom both the day and the month are named, presides over fire and is associated with light and warmth. Parsis—as the Zoroastrians living in India are called—traditionally give their household fires a rest on this day by not cooking and by offering special prayers. It is also customary to recite the portion of the Avesta (Zoroastrian sacred writings) known as the Atash Niyayesh, ‘‘Fire Litany.’’
Fire is the most important symbol for the followers of Zoroas-ter (also known as Zarathushtra), a Persian religious leader believed to have lived around 1200 B.C. They have fire tem-ples where fires burn constantly, as well as fires that are kindled in prayer halls and private homes for special services performed outside the temple.
The Zoroastrian calendar has 12 months of 30 days each, plus five extra days at the end of the year. Because of discrep-ancies in the calendars used by widely separated Zoroastrian communities around the world, there are now three different calendars in use, and the 9th of Adar can fall either in March, April, or November.
SOURCES:
DictWrldRel-1989, p. 829 RelHolCal-2004, p. 68
Fire is the most important symbol for the followers of Zoroas-ter (also known as Zarathushtra), a Persian religious leader believed to have lived around 1200 B.C. They have fire tem-ples where fires burn constantly, as well as fires that are kindled in prayer halls and private homes for special services performed outside the temple.
The Zoroastrian calendar has 12 months of 30 days each, plus five extra days at the end of the year. Because of discrep-ancies in the calendars used by widely separated Zoroastrian communities around the world, there are now three different calendars in use, and the 9th of Adar can fall either in March, April, or November.
SOURCES:
DictWrldRel-1989, p. 829 RelHolCal-2004, p. 68
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Pilgrimage to Adam's Peak
A footprint preserved in stone is a sacred site at the top of a mountain in Dalhousie, Sri Lanka. Depending on one’s religious tradition, the footprint belongs to Adam (Muslim), the Buddha, St. Thomas (Christian), or Lord Shiva (Hindu). Pilgrims have made the climb for over 1,000 years.
There are two routes to the summit of Adam’s Peak, one of which takes about three hours while the other takes seven hours. Though the terrain is rugged, many pilgrims make the ascent by the light of lanterns so they can arrive at the break of dawn and catch a spectacular view of the western coastline. According to local tradition, a woman who reaches the top will be reincarnated as a man.
CONTACT:
Living Heritage Trust of Sri
Lanka 38, Third Floor Galle Face Court 2 Colombo-3, Sri Lanka info@livingheritage.org
There are two routes to the summit of Adam’s Peak, one of which takes about three hours while the other takes seven hours. Though the terrain is rugged, many pilgrims make the ascent by the light of lanterns so they can arrive at the break of dawn and catch a spectacular view of the western coastline. According to local tradition, a woman who reaches the top will be reincarnated as a man.
CONTACT:
Living Heritage Trust of Sri
Lanka 38, Third Floor Galle Face Court 2 Colombo-3, Sri Lanka info@livingheritage.org
Adae-Kese
This is the highlight of the ceremonial year among the Ashanti people in Ghana. Adae-Kese commemorates the day on which priest Okomfo Anokye called down from heaven the Ashantis’ Golden Stool. Elaborate stools are important fixtures in Ashanti culture. When someone passes away, that person’s stool is treasured by his or her survivors and honored periodically. The Golden Stool is that of King Osei Tutu, the founder of the Ashanti kingdom.
During the Adae-Kese festival, people clean their ancestral stools and offer food to the gods and ancestors. The current king and the Golden Stool sit in state, while people from the community and, often, the president of Ghana pay homage to him. All of this takes place in Kumasi, where the king’s palace is located. The museum there houses a second, copycat golden stool used to deceive the British, who demanded that the stool be turned over to them after hearing that it was the source of the Ashanti king’s powers.
The Adae festival is held every 40 days throughout the year, but the January celebration is the largest and most important.
CONTACT:
Ghana Tourist Board P.O. Box 3106 Accra, Ghana
011-233-21-222153; fax: 011-233-21-231779 gtb@africaonline.com.gh
During the Adae-Kese festival, people clean their ancestral stools and offer food to the gods and ancestors. The current king and the Golden Stool sit in state, while people from the community and, often, the president of Ghana pay homage to him. All of this takes place in Kumasi, where the king’s palace is located. The museum there houses a second, copycat golden stool used to deceive the British, who demanded that the stool be turned over to them after hearing that it was the source of the Ashanti king’s powers.
The Adae festival is held every 40 days throughout the year, but the January celebration is the largest and most important.
CONTACT:
Ghana Tourist Board P.O. Box 3106 Accra, Ghana
011-233-21-222153; fax: 011-233-21-231779 gtb@africaonline.com.gh
Acadiens, Festivals
A combination of several festivals (food, music, crafts, and more) to celebrate Cajun culture in Lafayette, La., known as the capital of French Louisiana. When they were expelled from Nova Scotia by the British in the 1770s, the French Acadian farmers settled in the area around Lafayette in a region of 22 parishes that came to be known as Acadiana. The word ‘‘Cajun’’ comes from Acadian.
One part of the celebration is the Bayou Food Festival, which offers a range of Cajun cooking from crawfish gumbo to alligator sausage to corn maque-chou. The Louisiana Crafts Festival features handmade Cajun crafts and demonstrations by blacksmiths, decoy carvers, alligator skinners, and story-tellers. The Festival de Musique Acadienne features centu-ries-old music sung in French. Modern crafts are also on exhibit, and lectures and workshops on the Acadian language and history are part of the weekend.
CONTACT:
Lafayette Convention & Visitors
Commission P.O. Box 52066 Lafayette, LA 70505 800-346-1958 (US); 800-543-5340 (Canada) or 337-232-3737; Fax:
337-232-0161 info@lafayettetravel.com
One part of the celebration is the Bayou Food Festival, which offers a range of Cajun cooking from crawfish gumbo to alligator sausage to corn maque-chou. The Louisiana Crafts Festival features handmade Cajun crafts and demonstrations by blacksmiths, decoy carvers, alligator skinners, and story-tellers. The Festival de Musique Acadienne features centu-ries-old music sung in French. Modern crafts are also on exhibit, and lectures and workshops on the Acadian language and history are part of the weekend.
CONTACT:
Lafayette Convention & Visitors
Commission P.O. Box 52066 Lafayette, LA 70505 800-346-1958 (US); 800-543-5340 (Canada) or 337-232-3737; Fax:
337-232-0161 info@lafayettetravel.com
Acadian Festival
The Madawaska Territory, which at one time ran along the Canadian border between Maine and New Brunswick, was settled by a small group of farmers who were chased out of Acadia by the English in the late 18th century. As the settlements grew, they were separated into Canadian and American communities, with Edmundston on the Canadian side and Madawaska and St. David on the American side of the St. John River.
In 1978 the local historical society in Madawaska proclaimed June 28 as Acadian Day in the state of Maine, and since that time it has been the site of an Acadian (or French-Canadian) festival lasting anywhere from one day to a week. Regular events include French music and dancing, an Acadian Sup-per featuring pot en pot and fougere, a parade with bands and marching units from both Maine and Canada, and an Acadian mass followed by a procession to the white marble cross that marks the site of the original Acadian settlement. The festival usually coincides with a reunion of the original 13 families who settled here.
CONTACT:
Madawaska Chamber of Commerce 363 Main St., Ste. 101 P.O. Box 144 Madawaska, ME 04756 207-728-7000; fax: 207-728-4696 valleyvisit@pwless.net
In 1978 the local historical society in Madawaska proclaimed June 28 as Acadian Day in the state of Maine, and since that time it has been the site of an Acadian (or French-Canadian) festival lasting anywhere from one day to a week. Regular events include French music and dancing, an Acadian Sup-per featuring pot en pot and fougere, a parade with bands and marching units from both Maine and Canada, and an Acadian mass followed by a procession to the white marble cross that marks the site of the original Acadian settlement. The festival usually coincides with a reunion of the original 13 families who settled here.
CONTACT:
Madawaska Chamber of Commerce 363 Main St., Ste. 101 P.O. Box 144 Madawaska, ME 04756 207-728-7000; fax: 207-728-4696 valleyvisit@pwless.net
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