FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MONDAY, APRIL 22, 2024

CELEBRATE SPRING AND THE ARTS

WITH A FREE SHOWCASE IN WEST PHILLY

Poet-tree En Motion Returns on May 1 to The Rotunda

 with Fire Arts and Multidisciplinary Cultural Presentations

WEST PHILADELPHIA – The arts are aflame once again and everyone is welcome to enjoy a free multidisciplinary art showcase when Poet-tree En Motion, now in its 17th year, returns from 7-10 p.m. on Wednesday, May 1 to The Rotunda in University City, West Philadelphia.

This will be Poet-tree En Motion’s annual Rites of Spring celebration. It is keeping with the tradition of spring festivals that humans have celebrated on this date for millennia. It is known by different names, such as May Day, Walpurgis by the Germanic people, and Beltane by the Celtic Gauls and modern-day neo pagans.

Most spring celebrations involve festivities outdoors as well as rituals involving bonfires and fire dancing. Poet-tree En Motion always culminates its May 1 event with a fire show. This year it will feature the fire arts of Philadelphia fire troupe B.A.D. Blaze, and TanookiTwirls. Witness amazing fire tricks, including fire eating, fire breathing, fire poi, fire hoops, dragon staff, fire fans, and more.

“We need to look back on these sacred flames to remember and to be inspired by the flame of desire that burns deep within us all so that we may stay connected rather than disconnected in the age of communication,” says artistic director Gabrielle de Burke.

It was fire, storytelling, poetry, dancing, and other art forms that united our ancestors.

“[We have a] dependence on experiencing performance solely on the social media stages of mass communication,” she explains. “I try to bring us all together to celebrate so that inner fire does not get extinguished by the modern dilemma in isolation.”

De Burke, who goes by the stage name Plum Dragoness, will perform theatrical dance and spoken-word poetry in honor of her Celtic tribal ancestry. There will also be musical performances by Ihba B’askette’s Beat of Burden World Ensemble and The Primaries all-women rock band, live painting by Maximilliana Mango, and DJ’ed dance beats by DJ Cuz.

The seasonal Poet-tree En Motion events are supported by grants from the University of Pennsylvania. Admission is free. Donations at the door are suggested to benefit the Ramallah Friends School on the West Bank of Gaza. Tips for the artists are also welcome.

The Rotunda is located in the University City section of West Philadelphia at 4014 Walnut St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19104. For information about The Rotunda, log on to www.TheRotunda.org.

For information about Poet-tree En Motion, email plumdragoness@gmail.com. To be updated about the seasonal events, join the Facebook group at www.facebook.com/groups/116980678334215.

Watch a recap video of a previous Poet-tree En Motion here: https://tinyurl.com/PEMrecap .

ABOUT POET-TREE EN MOTION:

Poet-tree En Motion works to inspire both artist and audience to connect and work together toward cultivating the arts community in Philadelphia, welcoming artists of all kinds to experience performances local to the neighborhood, and offering the opportunity at each show for community participation to sign up in the all-genre open mike/stage and jam session component of the events.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Gabrielle de Burke (artist Plum Dragoness)

Founder/Event Organizer Poet-tree En Motion

484-557-9605

plumdragoness@gmail.com

Gina Renzi

Director of The Rotunda

gina@therotunda.org

FOR EVENT LISTINGS:

Poet-tree En Motion: “In Celebration of the Rites of Spring,” a multidisciplinary performing arts showcase 7-10 p.m. Wednesday, May 1 at The Rotunda 4014 Walnut St. University City, West Philadelphia. Doors open at 7 pm. The free community arts event will feature live music by Ihba B’askette’s Beat of Burden World Ensemble, live painting by Maximilliana Mango, spoken-word poetry and theatrical dance by Plum Dragoness, live music by The Primaries all-women rock band, DJ’ed dance beats by DJ Cuz and a fire arts performance by B.A.D. Blaze and Tanooki Twirls. Donations at the door will benefit the Ramallah Friends School on the West Bank of Gaza. Donations for individual artists are encouraged. For information, email plumdragoness@gmail.com or visit www.facebook.com/groups/116980678334215 and www.therotunda.org.

PERFORMER BIOS:

IHBA B’ASKETTE’S BEAT OF BURDEN WORLD ENSEMBLE

This is the latest, energetic collaboration of multi-talented Ihba B’askette and friends. Ihba combines West African drumming, funk and rock techniques. He also plays a variety of world instruments and delights audiences with his spirited moves and words.

Ihba frequently performs dub reggae as Dubsmith with his partner, Ryoko, a classically trained and accomplished multi-instrumentalist and board-certified music therapist. Dubsmith has entertained audiences in Philadelphia, New York, North Carolina, Saint Croix, and Jamaica. It currently holds a residency at the Cool Dread Bar in Tokyo.

The third featured member of B’askette’s Beat of Burden World Ensemble is saxophonist Mark Brown who is devoted to the uplifting power of music and the communal aspects of the group’s shows and workshops. His career is a diverse collection of adventures, from roaring rock at the iconic Peppermint Lounge to jug band music at the Philadelphia Folk Festival, funky roots, swing and blues at colleges, festivals, and some of the north east’s most beloved venues.

With a growing auxiliary of like-minded performers, Ihba B’askette’s Beat of Burden World Ensemble expands to make a grand entrance and deeper dance groove.

PLUM DRAGONESS

Native to West Philadelphia, Plum Dragoness (aka Gabrielle de Burke) is a multi-talented thespian, dancer, martial artist, instructor, poetess, and writer who has been involved with performing arts since childhood. She is known for her poetic style, vocal performance, fire dance, flow arts, and choreographic flair throughout Philadelphia and abroad.

Over the past 17 years, she has toured as a solo artist, founding member/core performer/assistant artistic director of Archedream for HumanKind among many others. She has independently released two albums of original work with the project Plum Dragoness & the Elements, known for its fusion of multimedia, live world-beat musical infusions, spoken-word vocals, and lyrical poetry. She has also helped bring together the all-female performance group trio The Femme-Mynistiques, who released their debut EP “Here She Comes…” in the summer of 2016.

Since 2007, Plum Dragoness has been a resident performance artist, as well as host and organizer for the successful performing arts series Poet-tree En Motion. This has allowed her the opportunity to share her own creative performances (including collaborative projects she initiated) and work created by many unique artists within the West Philadelphia community and beyond.

Her work as a healing arts practitioner and instructor continues to intersect with her work as an interdisciplinary performance artist through the incorporation of internal and martial arts forms in combination with dance, poetry, and theater presentation. She has been teaching in the Philadelphia area and abroad since 2000.

Instagram: @plumdragoness @dragonspiritarts

THE PRIMARIES

The Primaries is a Philadelphia-based musical trio, consisting of Blue (Susan Rosetti), Yellow (Morgan Pinkstone) and Red (Michelle Armour). These three rad colors joined forces in 2014 with the vision of pushing their limits and widening the spectrum, and now their mission is to get you singing and dancing along to pop songs: fun and funky, silly and sultry, retro, red-hot and rockin'! The Primaries are known to welcome impromptu guest performances and collaborations, as long as their guests are Complimentaries, Tertiaries, Hues, Shades, and sometimes even Metallics.  www.facebook.com/wearetheprimaries

MAXIMILLIANA MANGO

Maximilliana Mango, a graduate of Tyler School of Art, is a versatile multimedia artist exploring new materials and techniques in all creative endeavors. With a particular focus in portraiture and drawing live performance, Max thrives from the energy exchange in the moment while capturing the essence of creative individuals expressing themselves. Max finds inspiration in the beauty of everyday moments and believes that art has the power to transcend boundaries and connect people from all walks of life.

Social media: @MaxiMangoArts; @SelfLove4H8rs

B.A.D. BLAZE -- Fire Arts Troupe:

Instagram: @b.a.d._blaze_philly 

Ambra Robinson, aka Ambra Renee, is a Philly-based fire performer. Her journey with fire spinning began in 2017 after performing with Setu Tribe in the Great Circle at “the big burn.” Inspired by her Setu sisters and the PEX community, she continues to tell her stories through movement and fire dancing. Her favorite prop is fire fans.

Ambra is also a radio co-host on 98.5 FM’s “Uptown Date Night.” When she’s not spinning fire, Ambra enjoys experimenting with flow props while roller-skating.

On Instagram: @ambra_luv

Bryce Adams, aka Bryce is Nice, is a professional break-dancer, acrobatics coach, flow artist, and fire performer. He has been practicing his art for over 10 years. He is also a professional Parkour athlete and all-around entertainer who will dazzle you with his backflips.

Instagram: @bryceiznyce

TANOOKI TWIRLS

Tiffany Tung / TanookiTwirls is a fire and LED performer and instructor, with experience spanning over nine plus years. She has always loved movement, starting with karate at the age of 10 and badminton at the age of 13. In the last decade, she has fallen in love with circus arts, flow arts, fire arts and also obtained her Aerial Yoga Floor Yoga 300 certification. 

Tanooki is an accomplished fire dancer, enchanting audiences with fire hoops, fire fans, dragon staff, fire sword, palm torches and more.

Tanooki teaches private lessons out of her studio in East Falls, Philadelphia. Her services include hula hoops, silk veil fans, fire fans, or yoga lessons. In 2022, she launched her Patreon, which allows her to reach hoop students all over the globe.

In January 2024, she brought her popular Hula Hoop 101 virtual workshop to the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts. She will be hosting workshops with PSCA on a quarterly basis moving forward. Every first Tuesday of the month, Tanooki hosts a community adult hoop classes in Northern Liberties, Philadelphia. 

Email newsletter registration and website: https://www.tanookitwirls.com/

Follow:

www.facebook.com/tanookitwirls

www.instagram.com/tanookitwirls

www.youtube.com/@TanookiTwirls

On Demand Virtual Hoop Lessons:

www.patreon.com/tanookitwirls 

DJ BIG CUZ

Big Cuz is the program director of 98.5 FM (Uptown Radio) since 2018 in Philadelphia, the eighth biggest radio market in the United States.

Working with a small group of motivated individuals, 98.5 FM has grown from one weekly show to 30 original programs and a shining beacon for North Philadelphia.

Michael started off in the music business in 2002 as an emcee. Then he became a host, an event planner, and now a DJ. Since 2006, Michael has been working with Philadelphia At Risk Youth professionally as a social worker. Michael’s work specialized in transitioning youth out of the system and into successful roles as adults.

Michael is the founding member of the Philadelphia Freedom Project 501c3, which teaches leadership training through community service. Michael created Most Slept On Radio, a FM radio brand devoted to showcasing local and worldwide independent talent. Michael created Travel Gang International, a travel brand that encourages people to travel outside their comfort zone. Travel Gang Intl has partnered with groups in Puerto Rico to assist with hurricane relief efforts.  

Instagram: @mostsleptonradio 

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Donna J. Rilling will present on her upcoming book Foreclosed: Race and Dispossession in a Nineteenth Century Community. Professor Rilling’s research has focused on a community of land-owning African Americans in and around the intersection of 41st and Ludlow Streets. The genealogy of some of these folks may be found in the adjacent area formerly known as the Black Bottom. Donna Rilling is Associate Professor of History at the State University of New York at Stoney Brook where she focuses on the history of the early American republic. Her first book, Making Houses, Crafting Capitalism: Builders in Philadelphia, 1790-1850, examines frequently over-leveraged master builders of rowhouses.

Admission is FREE

Due to unforseen circumstances, Hodgepodge will not be performing tonight. We are working with them to find a new date. 

Lapcats: Lapcats began making their folksy, harmonious dreams come true in late 2023 when some Philly music scene friends decided to join and jam on the regular. Inspired by cats, love, emotions and the overall human experience, Lap Cats have been working on originals and covers that celebrate the power and intoxication of higher voice harmonies. Catch us streaming soon with our first EP.

Doors: 6:30pm, music @ 7:00pm

Creatives Chat Series 2024The Women's Coalition for Empowerment, Inc. in partnership with The Rotunda, presents the Creatives Chat Series 2024, a pop-up series for curated discussions merging creative industry topics, best practices, complimentary food, networking, and live music—an immersive experience for all.

Moderated by Shekhinah B., author of the Art Economic Empowerment Workbook, an artistic multi-hyphenate, arts administrator, Edutainer, and vocal performer.

Artists of all disciplines are invited to explore innovative approaches to creativity in a safe and non-judgmental environment. Join us for an enriching experience and be part of a community that values and encourages creativity in all forms.

Sunday, March 10, 2024 at 3pm - Women's Month

Sunday, May 5, 2024 at 3pm - Creative Business

Sunday, June 2, 2023 at 3pm - Black Music Month

Free | Open to the Public | Live Music | Free Food | Networking(Guest panelists will be announced soon....)

Please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/creatives-chat-series-2024-registration-775240664697

Polky:

Toronto based Polish folk group Polky, led by multi-talented female musicians, delights audiences with joyful vocal harmonies, unusual instruments, and upbeat performances. Drawing deep inspiration from Poland's rich cultural tapestry, they push musical boundaries by fearlessly blending Polish traditional music with sounds and rhythms from across the globe, carving out a niche entirely their own. With their infectious charm, captivating performances, and unyielding passion for exploration, Polky is undoubtedly a band that stands apart. Their music is not just a sonic experience but a celebration of cultural diversity, women empowerment, an invitation to revel in the joy of life, and a reminder that, deep down, we are all connected by the power of music.

Polky stands out for its distinctive elements, including the mesmerizing traditional vocals and incorporation of the 'suka,' an ancient lap fiddle reconstructed from historical paintings. Marta Solek, an accomplished suka virtuoso, has performed alongside esteemed Polish artists like Same Suki, Maria Pomianowska, and Nikola Kołodziejczyk. Furthermore, the lead vocalist, Ewelina Ferenc, earned the prestigious title of Traditional Singer of The Year at the 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards. Through their performances, Polky introduces Polish culture to North American audiences, embodying the role of cultural ambassadors for Polish modern traditions.

Medukha:

Medukha uses ethnographic recordings, tokens of our homelands, the languages we've grown up with, and the folk music conventions we've been exposed to as an emotive vehicle for interrogating the immigrant experience: a wedding song from Southeastern Poland with patriarchal undertones becomes a curbside conversation with a bird, a Ukrainian spring song is fractured into an unrecognizable ambient soundscape, a song with disputed origins becomes fertile ground for a new language.

Registration is FREE/pay-what-you-can. Registering helps us to know how many people to expect. Please register HERE

This is a virtual workshop on Zoom. Workshop topics include:

Registration is FREE and required. Please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/website-design-basics-for-artists-tickets-787458959947

Access to workshop replays will be available to attendees only.

The Bigger Picture is a new workshop series partnership with The Bigger Picture (TBP) is a new workshop series in partnership with the Rotunda, offering free monthly resource workshops for artists and artists' organizations, facilitated by local artists and creative entrepreneurs.

Bowerbird is pleased to present the Music of Moondog performed by the Arcana New Music Ensemble.

Louis Thomas Hardin, Jr., better known as Moondog, is one of the most famous and influential outsider musicians of the twentieth century. Born in Kansas to a devoutly religious family, Hardin was blinded at age 16 when he dug up a live dynamite cap. For 30 years, from the early 1940s to the early 1970s, he lived in New York City, where he became a well-known street performer known, thanks to his Nordic garb, as “the Viking of Sixth Avenue.” During this time he recorded several albums and won the respect of many important musicians, including Leonard Bernstein, Charlie Parker (for whom he wrote the piece “Bird’s Lament”), and Philip Glass (with whom he briefly shared an apartment). From 1974 until his death in 1999, Moondog lived primarily in Germany, where he enjoyed the most stable and productive creative period of his life. Celebrated for his diverse body of work that combines– among other influences– the rhythmic energy of jazz, the ritualistic intensity of Native American tribal music, and classical principles of counterpoint, Moondog’s music is at once uncategorizable and instantly identifiable.

PROGRAM

To be announced.&nbsp

ENSEMBLE

Aaron Stewart – saxophonesTessa Ellis – trumpetCarlos Santiago – violinThomas Kraines – celloAndy Thierauf – percussion

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Founded in 2016, the Arcana New Music Ensemble is a group of Philadelphia-based musicians dedicated to presenting interesting, beautiful, and unconventional music in interesting, beautiful, and unconventional places. Built on a flexible roster of 25 musicians, Arcana is able to perform a broad range of repertoire in numerous configurations. Composers featured in recent programs include Julius Eastman, Morton Feldman, Galina Ustvolskaya, Pauline Oliveros, Tom Johnson, Moondog, and James Tenney. Arcana has performed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Fleisher Art Memorial, The Rotunda, The Kitchen (NYC), and collaborated with Variant Six, Prometheus Chamber Orchestra, and Pig Iron Theater Company.

Admission is FREE

Bowerbird is pleased to present LA-based musician and artist claire rousay at The Rotunda with opening set by Apologist. claire rousay, known for challenging conventions in experimental and ambient music forms, recently released a new album in early 2024. A meditation on loneliness, her new album is her most audacious work yet, synthesizing disparate and unexpected influences from throughout rousay’s long and varied career as a performer.

Photo: Zoe Donahoe

claire rousay is a singular artist, known for challenging conventions in experimental and ambient music forms. rousay masterfully incorporates textural found sounds, sumptuous drones and candid field recordings into music that celebrates the beauty in life’s banalities. Her music is curatorial and granular in detail, deftly shaped into emotionally affecting pieces. sentiment is a meditation of the poignant emotional terrains of loneliness, nostalgia, sentimentality, guilt, and sex. The album’s narrative arc is guided by delicate musical gestures and artistic vulnerability, audaciously synthesizing disparate and unexpected influences. rousay crafted the songs in various homes, bedrooms, hotels, and other private places, the feeling of time and energy spent alone radiating from each passage. The album is a collection of heart-rending, incisive pop songs that explore universal feelings with subtlety and remarkable vision.

Rose Actor-Engel is a Philadelphia based musician and composer. She uses synthesizer, tape and field recordings to create ambient and experimental music, implementing specific rules and protocols to determine structure. She has been recording/performing as Apologist since 2018.

Admission is FREE

Fire Museum Presents: Dialogues 4: Leyya Mona Tawil aka Lime Rickey International & Julius MasriPresented in co-operation with Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture.

Dialogues: A Conversation and Performance is a series of events in which we invite someone to discuss their creative process and present an aspect or aspects of their work. For this edition we present artist and curator Leyya Mona Tawil aka Lime Rickey International in collaboration and discussion with multi instrumentalist and composer Julius Masri.

Leyya Mona Tawil [Lime Rickey International] is an artist, curator, and cultural activist. She works in sound art, dance, and hybrid transmissions. Tawil is a Syrian, Palestinian, American engaged in the world as such. Her works have toured throughout Europe, the Arab region, and the US. As 'Lime Rickey International', Tawil has been commissioned by Abrons Arts Center (NYC), New Performance Turku (Finland), KONE Foundation (Helsinki), ZVRK Festival (Bosnia), Serendipity Arts Festival (Goa), Fire Museum Presents (Philadelphia), Arab American National Museum (Dearborn) and was nominated for a 2019 “Bessies” Award in Music (NYC). She is the director of Arab.AMP - a platform for experimental music, live art, and ideas from the SWANA diaspora and  allied communities. Tawil is on the curatorial team of the Arab American National Museum (Dearborn), Southern Exposure Gallery (SF), Daring Dances (Ann Arbor), Al Bustan Seeds of Culture (Philly) and was the 2020 Suzanne Fiol Curatorial Fellow at ISSUE Project Room and is now a member of their Artistic Advisory Council. She is also the director of TAC Temescal Art Center in Oakland, California.

Julius Masri is a Philadelphia based multi instrumentalist, and performer/composer for the city's dance community at large. His music focuses on improvisatory methods and syncretic / linguistic exchanges  within  various  musical languages including Jazz, Metal, AfroCuban, Experimental Noise, and Arabic music. Born in Tripoli, Lebanon, he moved to the States in 1990 and picked  up drumming a year later. He studied with Philadelphia instructors Carl Mottola, Elaine Hoffman-Watts, and as an undergraduate at Bard College, with AACM's Thurman Barker, Richard Teitelbaum, and Joan Tower. He currently performs  in groups such  as  grind/crust metal bands Night Raids, Nomad War Machine, free jazz groups Sirius Juju, Spectral Forces, Dromedaries, trombone & synth duo Superlith, and has released the solo album "The Arabic Room", under the project name Mephisto Halabi to international acclaim in 2021.  He has  performed with Henry Grimes,  Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Bobby Zankel, Thurman  Barker, Jaap Blonk, Randi Potoppidan & members of the Sun Ra  Arkestra. Festivals performed include Sonic Circuits DC (2013, 2016), High Zero Baltimore (2016), Maryland  DeathFest  (2015, 2017), Shadow Woods Metal Festival (2017), The Outsiders Improvised & Creative Music Festival (2016, 2018). Julius is a recipient of a 2022 Yaddo Fellowship for composition, the 2022 University of the Arts creative research and innovation grant.Registration is FREE/pay-what-you-can. Registering helps us to know how many people to expect. Please register HERE

Fire Museum Presents: Checkpoint 303 and Jad AtouiPresented in co-operation with Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture.

Checkpoint 303:

Checkpoint 303 is an activist sonic project that creates experimental & electronic music, by combining field recordings performed mainly in Palestine, Tunisia & Egypt with electronic beats, audio archives, oud & piano. Led by sound designer SC MoCha. the electronic experiment initially kicked off in 2004 when sound cutter SC MoCha teamed up with Bethlehem-based Palestinian sound catcher SC Yosh. the idea is to cut, track, fragment and reconstruct the audio soundscape from daily lives in the middle east and across the Arab world. new audio reporting on injustice. an ode to resistance in the face of oppression.

Jad Atoui:

Jad Atoui is a NY-based sound artist and improviser whose work spans through live performance, compositions, installations, and workshops. He composes and performs electronic and electro-acoustic music. Atoui has performed with musicians like John Zorn, Pauline Oliveros, Laurie Anderson, Chuck Bettis, Tarek Atoui & Anthony Sahyoun. He has also given and co-directed workshops at Marfa Sounding, Ashkal Alwan & Beirut Synth Center. Commissioned work folio includes residencies at The Stone (NYC), The National Sawdust (NYC), Beirut Art Center, Arab Image foundation & The Sharjah art foundation.

During his formative years in New York, Atoui found interest in the New York avant-garde scene while working closely with NYC downtown musicians, learning improvised music techniques. In 2015, he spearheaded the “Biosonics” project in collaboration with scientist Ivan Marazzi in order to incorporate bio-sonification of behaviors as compositional tools. The project was later published in John Zorn’s Arcana Book Vol. XVIII and premiered at The National Sawdust as part of The Stone’s commissioning series. He is currently working with artist and musician Anthony Sahyoun on their duo NP. They released their first album "Lattices” under Ruptured Label. Recent musical ventures also include joining Kinematik's Ensemble 1 release Al ~Jadi.Tickets are $5 for students, $10 general admission. Please purchase tickets HERE

Tickets on sale NOW

Doors 7:00 PM / Music 8:00 PM

General Admission

Advance: $20.00 / Day of Show: $30.00

More info and tickets: https://www.circledconcerts.com/events/monomums

MONO MEANS ONE is a psychedelic prog trio and the brainchild of bassist and composer John Ferrara, best known as the bass player and co-founder of the acclaimed world fusion band “ Consider the Source .” Mono Means One’s sound contains melancholic melodies, rich sonic textures with Drum 'N’ Bass grooves and Mathrock sensibilities. Half composed and half improvised, the music is often dark, sometimes bright and other times heavy, oscillating between chill grooves to almost unbearable intensity. Originally composed entirely on the bass guitar, John paired up with Rob Madore (Drums) and Isaac Young (Keys), of Connecticut's amazing PX3 to borrow some of their “Futuristic Synth-Driven Madness” to help bring layers and textures to these compositions that fill rooms across the Northeast.

MUMS THE WORD