|
|
|
|
Saturday March 28, 2009

|
|
|
Festival of Colors 2009 (tips and pointers # 1)
Please be our guest along with thousands of others at this anticipated Utah Valley event. In this newsletter we'll give you all the details of performances and activities on three different stages from 4 pm until 8 pm. If you come just for throwing of the colors you'll be missing wonderful cultural dance programs and dramas, so we urge you to arrive by 4 pm to enjoy the 'pre colors' festivities.
For a timely arrival, by pass the first Spanish Fork exit, number 257, which will be clogged with festival traffic. Come to the next exit, number 253, called "Benjamin". When you turn left at the exit ramp the temple will be visible. If you are GPSing your way to the temple, best to input 311 West, 8500 South, 84660. There are usually parking spaces available on the temple property. Thus there should be no need to park on the roadside and walk a long way (though most will do this nevertheless).
There is no admission fee for the festival.
|
|
|
|
Main Stage
|

Entertainment 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm
|
|
|
|
Performance Schedule
4:00 pm, Nalini Landar performs Kathak dance 4:20 pm, Nepalese Folk Dance 4:30 pm, Ankith Ray and Friends, Oddisi dance 4:45 pm, Bonni Chowdhury and Kathak dance troupe 5:00 pm, Nalini Landar Part Two 5:15 pm, Drama, Transformation of Valmiki 5:30 pm, 'Devotion' by Shatakshi Goyal & troupe. 5:40 pm, Lighting of the bonfire, burning of the Hollika effigy, throwing of colors, Mantra Rock band starts up, dancing until the cows come home. Band members: Vocals, Jai Krishna Das, Govinda Dhattas, Vatsal Das, Lead Guitar, Curt Gordon, Bass Guitar, Troy Peery, Harmonica Joel Bradford, Drums Zachary Perry.
|
|
In the Temple Room
|

| Temple Room, 4:00 Pm - 5:45 pm |
|
|
We'll have lots of great kirtan leaders on hand, like the two Govinda Dhattas from Los Angeles, Vatsal from North Carolina, Shatakshi from Boise, what to speak of our own Utah Valley's Jai Krishna Das and Sri Hanuman. They will be rocking in the temple room until they take the main stage at 5:45 pm.
|
|
|
Pavilion Schedule
|

Gamelan Concert & Dance 4 pm & 7 pm Photo Courtesy of Eric Torrie
|
|
|
Gamelan Bintang Wahyu, Utah's first and only
Indonesian percussion orchestra, will present an exciting concert of
Balinese music featuring world- renowned gamelan musician and composer
I Ketut Gede Asnawa, his wife, the esteemed dancer Putu Oka Mardiani,
and their three daughters, Tarika, Yuni, and Yoni (also gifted dancers).
The performance will include traditional
and contemporary gamelan music and dance, boisterous processional
belaganjur music, and kecak, the famous Balinese "monkey chant".
Tickets for the 4pm show will be available through the BYU Fine Arts Box Office (http://www.byuarts.com), with any remaining tickets for sale at the door. Tickets for the 7pm will be sold at the door.
All tickets to the gamelan concert are $5.00. After the first Gamelan concert 5 pm - 5:45 pm there will be additional performing arts presentations by the artists from the main stage recycled.
|
|
|
Mantra Rock, Fire & Film
|

|
Festival attendees are requested not to climb up on to the stage and not to put colors on the musicians. Colors
are safe and non stain, but do not wear your Sunday best. Colors may be
thrown anywhere on body, or they can be smeared gently into others hair
or onto cheeks, neck and fore head (avoid eyes). Mimi, our EMT will be
on hand in a visibly marked tent in case any one needs eye rinse or
other related amenities. If you have not been to the festival before,
it is strongly advised not to be smack in the middle of the crowd when
the color throwing starts. According to one BYU student's blog last
year, "I couldn't see anything for 7 minutes, three of which I couldn't
breathe. It was great!!!"(not everyone would think so) After getting 'colored up', guests will be
requested to dust off and wash their hands before reentering the
building. No colors may be thrown in the temple
building or on the veranda. Spectators who would like not to get colored should feel these are "safe" zones. Photographers and video graphers are advised to cover their lenses with some sort of plastic. We will appreciate your sending the temple any and all images (carudas@earthlink.net) so we can post them on our web site after the event.
|
|
|
Colors (Gulal)
|

|
This year bags of colors have been pre packaged into $ 5.00 (two
Indian bags and one locally made) and $ 10.00 bags (three Indian bags
and four locally made) to cut down on the long lines waiting to
purchase. Individual bags will be sold as single sale items only. $
1.00 for locally made (smaller with no fragrance) & $ 2.00 for
Indian bags (larger with more vivid colors and fragrance). The
Indian bags for authenticity have been custom made, bagged, and imported at considerable cost. The ingredients of the locally made bags cost
about 40 cents and hundreds if not thousands of volunteer hours went
into the packaging of them. Profit is about half, which helps pay for
the costs of entertainment, advertising, sound, etc. Colors are not
allowed from outside for health and safety reasons, as well as the fact
this is the way the temple covers its many expenses.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Full Course Meals
|

|
Full course hot meals will be available for $ 6.00 throughout the evening. Items may include saag paneer, matar paneer, puris, papadams, channa masala, rice pilao, dahl, hallava, etc.
|
|
|
|