This weekend, Memorial Union will be hosting the 11th annual Madison World Music Festival, where attendees will have the opportunity to witness a variety of dance, music and workshop acts from across the globe — all sharing one stage.
Located at Memorial Union, with a Saturday afternoon segment taking place on Willy Street, the festival will not only be celebrating world cultures, but will be serving as a celebration for the re-opening of the Wisconsin Union Theater, which has been in the works for the last year and a half.
The lineup will kick off 4 p.m. Friday, with a performance from Dragon Knights, a company that aspires to “bring the magic” by producing culturally blended street shows. The entertainers, who have trained in Europe, Asia and the United States, integrate aspects of circus, puppetry and theater in order to create a multicultural interactive arts experience with emphasis on stilt-walking stunts and idiosyncratic puppetry. Dragon Knights will not only kick off the event, but will be doing various segments throughout the course of the two-day schedule.
California-based aerial dance group Bandaloop will follow Dragon Knight Friday evening, sending the festival into full gear with a gravity-defying acrobatic performance. The company, which has received a great deal of press including features on the CBS Morning Show and ABC 7 News, constructs an innovative perspective on what constitutes “dance,” by turning the dance floor on its side and using vertical surfaces to execute choreographed routines. Recognized for their ability to flip, hang and fly from any surface, the dancers and acrobats will have no problem transforming the walls of the Union into their stage. If you happen to miss Bandaloop during their Friday evening performance, you can catch them on the stage numerous times throughout the course of the festival.
In addition to an array of overarching multicultural performances such as Dragon Knight and Bandaloop, the program will consist of a series of regional and country specific presentations. Hailing from the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, the queen of Calypso music, Calypso Rose, will be taking the stage in cohort with fellow Trinidadian band, Kobo Town. At 74 years old, Calypso Rose still has a radiating stage presence – singing and dancing to tunes inspired by a mélange of African and French roots, which form the base of Calypso music. Drew Gonzalves, founder and front man of Kobo Town, complements Calypso Rose’s style, with his socially and politically perceptive lyrics and his ability to play the cuatro – a small-scale, four-stringed, guitar-like instrument that is often found in Latin American music. It’s a unique opportunity to witness a true Calypso music power duo.
Another region-specific act is Tunisian singer-songwriter Emel Mathlouthi. Mathouthi is not only an extraordinary musician with a powerful set of vocals but also a musician with a powerful message. As a prominent and influential figure in the Jasmine Revolution, which forced Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali out of presidency in 2011, Mathlouthi serves as an icon for political and social activists. In fact her song “Kelmti Horra,” which translates to “The World is Free,” spread virally via social media in Tunisia and became the anthem of the revolt.
Korrontzi, a performance group from the isolated Basque region of Spain, will also be featured at the festival. Because the trikitixa, an accordion-style instrument, serves as the foundation of the band’s music, the group’s name exemplifies that which attendees should expect to hear. The name “Korrontzi” is actually influenced by a legendary figure from the band’s hometown, who is known to have played the trikitixa for crowds leaving church after masses. The performance will be sure to make audiences dance, as the style of music is intended to drive folk dances with an intensive beat and a bit of pop rock influence.
In addition to presentations from the acts described above, the festival will feature world-renowned acts from Honduras, Mali, Argentina, Taiwan and Cuba.
Sponsored by the Union, with a generous hand from other Madison-based companies, the Madison World Music Festival is free to anyone who would like to foster artistic and cultural expression. This is an event for those who wish to experience and celebrate some of the most spectacular talent from across the broad world without having to step beyond the borders of the city of Madison.
