Asian/Pacific American Heritage Festival

Dubbed as the largest pan-Asian community event on the East Coast, The Asian/Pacific American (A/PA) Heritage Festival is a community festival with music, performances, food, and family fun. Performances by NYC Bhangra, KCP Arts, Soh Daiko,  Bollywood Axion, Blip Blip Bleep, Magnetic North & Taiyo Na, Cynthia Lin, Kevin So and Alfa. Come sample the finest appetizers of Indonesian sate skewers, Chinese spicy home style noodles, and other dishes from the Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, Cambodian, Vietnam and Indian cultures.

When: Sunday, May 2, 2010, 12 – 6 PM
Where: East 14th Street, between Broadway and Park Avenue

Click here to learn more.

Event Info: His Holiness The Dalai Lama in NYC, May 20-23, 2010

Each year, His Holiness the Dalai Lama travels the world offering teachings and public talks to individuals from many different faiths and backgrounds. While His Holiness will also often bestow empowerment and initiations to coincide with these teachings, he continues to stress the importance of one attending teachings in order to provide practitioners with a better understanding of Buddhist philosophy.

On May 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd, 2010 Healing the Divide and The Tibet Center are honored to host His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s return to New York City.

His Holiness will impart three days of teachings on Nagarjuna’s Commentary on Bodhicitta, and A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, by Shantideva.

On May 23rd, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will give a public talk entitled Awakening the Heart of Selflessness. His Holiness will discuss the process of realizing true selflessness and how this realization awakens a genuine caring for others. This is how we achieve inner peace for ourselves, a feeling of responsibility for the happiness of others, and ultimately a more compassionate world for everyone. The public talk will conclude with a short question and answer session.

Both events will take place at Radio City Music Hall in NYC
For more information, please visit: Dalai Lama Official Website

The legend of Madame White Snake comes alive in Boston!

The legend of Madame White Snake is one of the most popular tales of China, with countless versions in folklore, literature, and drama. Madame White Snake, a classical transformation myth, is the story of a powerful white snake demon who transforms into a beautiful woman to experience love. As a legend connected to Hangzhou’s West Lake, it may have arisen as early as the seventh century. The thirteenth century saw the first literary versions, no doubt borrowed from professional storytellers in the streets of Hangzhou. It first appeared on stage in the fourteenth century, and the story is today one of the most often performed in Chinese opera.

On February 26, 28, and March 2, the world premiere of Madame White Snake, a new opera co-commissioned by Opera Boston and the Beijing Music Festival, will bring the legend to live on the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston, MA.  In October 2010, Madame White Snake will migrate to China for its international premiere at the Beijing Music Festival. Madame White Snake is set in Hangzhou, a sister city to Boston. Mayor Thomas M. Menino and The Mayor’s Office of Arts, Tourism and Special Events are working closely with Opera Boston to highlight this sister city connection as planning moves forward for the world premiere.

Cerise Lim Jacobs, Madame White Snake’s Chinese-American librettist, is the creative force behind this pioneering adaptation of the 1,000 year old Chinese legend. She was born in colonial Singapore into a traditional Chinese family. Madame White Snake is her first opera libretto.
Zhou Long, Madame White Snake’s China-born composer, is an internationally acclaimed Chinese-born composer.  This marks his first opera.
Ying Huang, Madame White Snake’s Chinese soprano, has generated an extraordinary level of critical acclaim.

For more information, visit http://www.operaboston.org