People of all ages crowded the Alliant Energy Center, to watch and participate in University of Wisconsin’s annual On Wisconsin spring Powwow.

The event spanned the weekend of April 1 and was hosted by UW’s Wunk Sheek. It featured demonstrations, exhibitions and intertribal dances.

There were more than 10 intertribal dance styles, each one displaying its own unique regalia. Every dancer dressed in their colorful garments, embellished with beads, embroidery and feathers.

When dances began, the dynamic drum beats and music presented by indigenous artists brought everyone’s minds to nature, with the women’s long sleeves sliding across the air like hovering, wild birds. The swaying, graceful movements of the dancers resembled grass being blown by the wind across a rolling plain.

The intertribal dance represents natural phenomenons and creatures that live in the wilderness.

The event also gathered indigenous artisans to exhibit their crafts and art work. It was the ideal place to get traditional crafts like stone earrings and bracelets made of natural materials. The stunning turquoise and opal stones that were featured in some of the pieces represent symbols of nature.