The 10th Annual Leimert Park Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks

LA Commons presented the 10th Annual Leimert Park Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 30 August 2020 at 2 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles, UTC-7) / 4 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 5 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).

This is the 10th year of Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks direct from Leimert Park, Los Angeles' African American cultural hub! Join us in an incredible celebration of a decade of honoring ancestors and uplifting the artists and culture bearers that define our neighborhood and connect to an international contingent of creators from across the African diaspora.

Come together to connect with ancient wisdom and to showcase the power of black joy. The program has never been more important as an unapologetic display of Blackness that spotlights the creativity of artists from Leimert Park and around the world in virtual expression of hope, solidarity, and insight.

Featuring:
WORLD PREMIERE: 8:46, Dance of the Queen Mothers by elder and internationally renowned choreographer Nzingha Camara
Ritual for Healing performed by S.H.I.N.E. MUWASI
A Virtual Tour of Leimert Park Black-Owned Businesses with We Love Leimert
Celebratory Performances from across the Africa diaspora: Wezi (Zambia), Diamanta and Kuenta (Aruba/Curaçao), Adunni & Nefretiti (Nigeria), Viviam Caroline and Banda Dia (Brazil), Jimetta Rose and the Voices of Creation (Leimert Park)

Leimert Park's Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks is an annual celebration of our ancestors and an invocation for the South Central LA community. Founded in 2011 by artists Najite Agindotan, Rene Fisher-Mims, and Ben Caldwell in collaboration with LA Commons, FOM is a multicultural, multigenerational, and multimedia arts event at the Leimert Park Art Walk that champions the vast identities of the African diaspora.

LA Commons engages communities in the creation of public art that tells their unique stories and serves as the basis for dialogue, understanding, activation and empowerment.

About HowlRound TV
HowlRound TV is a global, commons-based peer produced, open access livestreaming and video archive project stewarded by the nonprofit HowlRound. HowlRound TV is a free and shared resource for live conversations and performances relevant to the world's performing arts and cultural fields. Its mission is to break geographic isolation, promote resource sharing, and to develop our knowledge commons collectively. Participate in a community of peer organizations revolutionizing the flow of information, knowledge, and access in our field by becoming a producer and co-producing with us. Learn more by going to our participate page. For any other queries, email [email protected], or call Vijay Mathew at +1 917.686.3185 Signal/WhatsApp. View the video archive of past events.