Penn Museum's 29th Annual Celebration of African Cultures
Saturday, February 24, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM
PHILADELPHIA, PA 2018—Traditional African music and dance, an African Jazz Connection workshop, dance and drumming workshops, puppetry, storytelling, an African marketplace, art-making, games, gallery tours, film, even African animal yoga for children—it all comes alive at the Penn Museum’s 29th annual Celebration of African Cultures on Saturday, February 24, 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. The celebration, presented in the Museum’s Africa galleries and around the Museum, is free with Museum admission.
Music and Dance of the African Diaspora
Music and dance is always a major part of the celebration, and this year’s Celebration offers lots of opportunity to enjoy performances—and join in.
Culture Shock, a multicultural dance group affiliated with the University of the Sciences’ International Society, presents traditional dances from East and West Africa, with hints of Caribbean influence. The Women's Sekere Ensemble percussionists, led by Omomola Iyabumni, bring the rhythms and tones of the sekere, a traditional Nigerian percussion instrument made from intricately beaded gourds, into the galleries.
Guests of all ages are encouraged to get involved at an African Dance Workshop, and a Drum Workshop, both offered by the Dunya Performing Arts Company. The Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble offers the African-Jazz Connection performance and workshop. The Ensemble demonstrates how various rhythms and “types” of jazz compare to— and sometimes have originated with— multi-faceted beats and rhythmic syncopations from Africa.
African Rhythms, a student-led African drum and dance troupe at the University of Pennsylvania, closes out the day’s performances, offering dances from West Africa and the African diaspora, including the Caribbean and South America.
Stories, Puppets, and Games, oh my!
There is much for the young and the young at heart to enjoy. Everyone is invited to join Queen Nur, storyteller supreme, for a fun and interactive storytelling session in celebration of voices of courage. The Catskill Puppet Theater, Inc., offers “The Lion’s Whiskers,” a musical adaptation of a traditional Ethiopian folktale. Meet a lion, two giraffes, a camel, a cast of five human characters and some hyena shadow puppets, on hand to tell the tale! Children can try some new poses at a short African Animal Yoga session, too!
Art and crafting opportunities are available for all ages throughout the day. The Black Artists Collective offers a station where guests can make African inspired masks and jewelry. Ethiopian-born artist Bole Lig invites guests to a create maps of Africa, as well as art inspired by iconic monuments from the continent.
Game lovers can stop by and play, or learn to play, the African board game Mancala at a game station.
Museum Archives selects and screens a short documentary film on African culture.
An African Marketplace and African Foods
Throughout the celebration, visitors have the chance to browse and shop at an African mini-marketplace featuring wooden, leather, and bronze accessories, as well as colorful prints, art, jewelry and apparel available for purchase, from special vendors, including Rashida Watson of The Silk Tent, Puyâ Yohannes of Bole Lig, Chakir Bouchaib of Little Marrakesh Bazaar, and Desiree Langford of Nayaz Boutique. Guests can also stop by the Museum Shop, which features a collection of African-inspired and fair trade, African-made items.
The Museum’s Pepper Mill Café also gets into the spirit, offering an African-inspired lunch menu for purchase.
World Culture Days: Passport to the World
The Celebration of African Cultures is part of the Penn Museum's popular World Culture Series designed to introduce visitors of all ages to the rich cultural traditions found throughout the Museum's galleries and throughout the world. Upcoming World Culture Days include Egyptomania (March 24) and Jamaica Day (June 2). Guests are invited to pick up a Passport to Cultures at any admission desk to begin collecting stamps during any of the World Culture Series celebrations. Collect 10 or more stamps to earn an invitation to a special Penn Museum Junior Anthropologist ceremony!
Signature Galleries
The Africa Gallery features objects from cultures throughout the continent. Highlights include Akan gold weights, and musical instruments made from wood, skins, gourds, and plant fibers. The Museum was among the first American museums to begin collecting art and artifacts from Africa; most items in the collection were obtained between 1891 and 1930. The adjacent Imagine Africa exhibition invites visitors to explore their own understanding of Africa via broad themes and artifacts on display—and provide feedback about what interests them, as the Museum makes plans for an updated suite of Africa Galleries to open in late 2019.
The Museum’s renowned Egypt (Sphinx) and Egypt (Mummies) Galleries feature a massive red granite Sphinx (the largest Sphinx in the Western hemisphere); monumental architecture, art, and artifacts from 5,000 years of Egyptian culture; and the story of mummification in the exhibition The Egyptian Mummy: Secrets and Science.
Schedule for the day:
11:15 am | African Animal Yoga for Children |
11:30 am | Short Documentary Film |
12:00 pm | Women's Sekere Ensemble |
12:30 pm | Culture Shock Dance Performance |
1:00 pm | Queen Nur Storytelling |
1:30 pm | Dunya Performing Arts Company Drum Workshop |
2:00 pm | Catskill Puppet Theater, Inc: The Lion’s Whiskers |
2:15 pm | Women’s Sekere Ensemble |
2:30 pm | Dunya Performing Arts Company Dance Workshop |
3:00 pm | Argeggio Jazz Ensemble Performance and Workshop |
3:15 pm | Short Documentary Fillm |
3:45 pm | African Rhythms Dance Performance |
Throughout the day:
African Marketplace
Mask-making and Jewelry-making Station with Black Artists Collective
African Map-making Station with artist Bole Lig
Mancala Game Station
African Menu in the Pepper Mill Café (fee)
About the Penn Museum
The Penn Museum (the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology) is dedicated to the study and understanding of human history and diversity. Founded in 1887, the Museum has sent more than 300 archaeological and anthropological expeditions to all the inhabited continents of the world. With an active exhibition schedule and educational programming for children and adults, the Museum offers the public an opportunity to share in the ongoing discovery of humankind's collective heritage.
The Penn Museum is located at 3260 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (on Penn's campus, across from Franklin Field). Public transportation to the Museum is available via SEPTA's Regional Rail Line at University City Station; the Market-Frankford Subway Line at 34th Street Station; trolley routes 11, 13, 34, and 36; and bus routes 21, 30, 40, and 42. Museum hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and first Wednesdays of each month until 8:00 pm, with P.M. @ PENN MUSEUM evening programs offered. Closed Mondays and holidays. Admission donation is $15 for adults; $13 for senior citizens (65 and above); free for U.S. Military; $10 for children and full-time students with ID; free to Members, PennCard holders, and children 5 and younger.
Hot and cold meals and light refreshments are offered to visitors with or without Museum admission in The Pepper Mill Café; the Museum Shop offers a wide selection of gifts, books, games, clothing and jewelry. Penn Museum can be found on the web at www.penn.museum. For general information call 215.898.4000. For group tour information call 215.746.8183.
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About the Penn Museum
The Penn Museum’s mission is to be a center for inquiry and the ongoing exploration of humanity for our University of Pennsylvania, regional, national, and global communities, following ethical standards and practices.
Through conducting research, stewarding collections, creating learning opportunities, sharing stories, and creating experiences that expand access to archaeology and anthropology, the Museum builds empathy and connections across diverse cultures
The Penn Museum is open Tuesday-Sunday, 10:00 am-5:00 pm. It is open until 8:00 pm on first Wednesdays of the month. The Café is open Tuesday-Thursday, 9:00 am-3:00 pm and Friday and Saturday, 10:00 am-3:00 pm. On Sundays, the Café is open 10:30 am-2:30 pm. For information, visit www.penn.museum, call 215.898.4000, or follow @PennMuseum on social media.