May 5 – May 26, 2024
Boston Children’s Museum is recognizing Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month throughout May, with a series of activities developed in collaboration with community organizations and independent artists. Between May 5 and May 26, Museum visitors are invited to attend and participate in a variety of music, dance, visual art making, and storytelling programs geared for children and their families. Through this series, Boston Children’s Museum highlights the artistic practice of local AAPI identifying creatives, and together creates a space for Museum visitors to reflect on their own identities, traditions, and stories, while developing their sense of curiosity and understanding. Join us in celebrating AAPI Month all May!
Lion Dance with Nüwa Athletic Club
Sunday, May 5, 10:30am
Enjoy a dynamic performance of a traditional Chinese lion dance, with Nüwa Athletic Club. Watch performers mimic lions’ movements in a lion costume that represents good luck and prosperity. In Chinese and other Asian cultures, lion dances are typically performed during the Lunar New Year, and for other significant occasions. Based in Boston, The Nüwa Athletic Club’s mission is to provide an environment for Asian- American girls and women to enhance their physical and emotional development through teamwork, sportsmanship and cultural activities, which includes but is not limited to lion and dragon dances.
Website: www.wearenuwa.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wearenuwa
Instagram: @wearenuwa
Berklee Indian Exchange Presents: Saarang – Colors of Indian Fusion Music
Sunday, May 5, 12:00pm
Berklee Indian Exchange presents a concert exploring new horizons in Indian Fusion Music, featuring a trio of musicians who bring their own unique flair. Shivaraj Natraj, a virtuoso in Carnatic percussion and beatboxing, lends his extraordinary talent as a vocal percussionist. Accompanying him on the electric guitar is Inesh Krishnamurthy, whose profound understanding of Carnatic music, combined with his exploration of Jazz results in a captivating fusion of genres. Together, the Berklee Indian Exchange offers an unforgettable musical experience. With repertoire rooted in Indian Fusion music, this concert promises to captivate and delight visitors, with interactive elements and moments of joy and connection.
Reeshabh Purohit: @reeshabhp
Shivaraj Natraj: @thekonnakolbeatboxer
Inesh Krishnamurthy: @ineshkrishnamurthy
Storybook Reading with Author Zain Bandali
Sunday, May 5, 2:00pm
Join us for a “Mehndi Boy” reading with children’s book author Zain Bandali, a sweet story exploring creative identity and gender through the eyes of a little boy who loves mehndi.
Zain Bendali is an author, poet, and unapologetic storyteller. His debut children’s book Mehndi Boy, is a Silver Birch Express Nominee and was recognized as a “Best Bet” by the Ontario Library Association and as a “Best Book for Kids” by the New York Public Library in 2023. Zain studied at the University of Waterloo and was awarded the Upkar Arora Social Impact Leadership Scholarship for his work in creating a grassroots community initiative to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion on campus in 2020. He is an avid vegetable gardener but cannot always stomach the chili peppers he grows.
@zenbanda
The Music of South India
Sunday, May 12, 1:00pm
This workshop, led by Violinist Kavita Shankar, introduces visitors to the world of Carnatic music – a form of Indian Classical Music named after the region of its origin. Learn about the basics, hear how the instruments sound from live music and recordings, and learn how to sing a song.
Interactive Music Performance with Subdrift Boston
Saturday, May 18, 1:00pm
A Baraat procession and meet the instruments interactive experience, featuring Subdrift Boston musicians.
Subcontinental Drift Boston (SubDrift) is an intergenerational creative community that emerged within the South Asian Diaspora out of a need to tell their own stories. Building community through the arts, they are part of a growing national movement that strives to build an inclusive, forward-looking diaspora including all religions, castes, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, abilities, and other intersecting identities to be welcome! They host monthly open mics, writing workshops, and other programming to foster artistic expression, collaboration, and innovation.
Drawing with Bren Bataclan
Saturday, May 18, 12:00pm, 2:00pm
Join visual artist Bren Bataclan in the Artlab for a drawing workshop inspired by his own original artwork. Bren’s pieces explore his immigration experience from the Philippines to the United States, Philippine mythology, and the current situations migrants are facing in the United States and beyond. This drawing workshop is an easy and fun way to learn how to draw Bren’s happy and whimsical characters, for kids and adults alike!
Little Feet, Big Moves: Exploring South Indian Dance
In collaboration with MIT Heritage Arts of South Asia (MITHAS)
Thursday, May 23, 1:00pm
Step into the vibrant world of South Indian dance with this dance workshop geared for young children. “Little Feet, Big Moves” offers a captivating introduction to the rich cultural heritage of South India through the traditional dance form of Bharathanatyam and Carnatic music. Led by Shriya Srinivasan, a professional Bharathanatyam dancer, children will embark on an exciting journey of rhythm, expression, and storytelling through movement. This interactive session will ignite their imagination, foster creativity, and instill a deeper appreciation for the art form.
For more information about MITHAS, please visit mithas.org.
@shriya.the.dancer
My home: Book Making and Story-Sharing Workshop
Friday, May 24,10-10:45am, 11:30 am-12:15pm
Come learn how to make a book from only a sheet of paper! Led by interdisciplinary artist, Joanna Tam, this workshop invites you to write down and draw your own stories of what home means to you. At the end, there will be the chance to share your story with other people in the workshop!
@joanna_tam
Colors in Grace with Ms. Chu Ling’s Dance Academy
Saturday, May 25, 10:30am-11:00am, 11:30am-12:00pm
Join us for a vibrant and colorful performance of Ms. Chu Ling’s Dance Academy, a mixed age group of youth and adult dancers. Founded in 1998 after moving to Boston from Beijing, Chu Ling founded the academy to bring more diversity and different cultures to the local dance community. This performance mixes traditional Chinese dance with contemporary Ballet, and will include time at the end for audience members to learn how to dance with a hand fan or ribbon.
Joanna Tam: My Heritage, Your Heritage: Interactive Story-Sharing Workshop
Saturday, May 25, 1:00-2:00pm
Led by interdisciplinary artist Joanna Tam, this interactive story-sharing workshop will guide children and adults as they share stories about their heritage. Come learn about Joanna’s beloved hometown of Hong Kong, and hear a reading of some of her favorite books that were written and illustrated by AAPI authors.
Art & Storytelling with Artist Ngoc-Tran Vu/ Nghệ Thuật & Kể Chuyện với Nghệ Sĩ Ngọc-Trần Vũ
Sunday, May 26, 12:00-2:00pm
Meet Ngoc-Tran Vu – a multimedia artist and cultural organizer, based in in Boston’s Dorchester community. Tran is an interdisciplinary visual creator, educator, and storyteller.
Inspired by one of Tran’s favorite children’s books “Hundred Years of Happiness”, a Vietnamese family story about love and care for each other, create your own art, based on your family memories!
Learn about Tran’s latest project “1975: A Vietnamese Diaspora Memorial.”
www.TranVuArts.com/
Collections Window Display
Display installation date – TBD
A collaboration with Tatsuya “Tad” Murao of Kintsugi Boston and the Japan Society of Boston led to a workshop where Museum visitors learned about Kintsugi, and created new pieces of art out of recycled materials. Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing and restoring broken pottery items. Rather than making broken parts look brand-new, Kintsugi highlights the broken parts, so that the repairs are seen as beauty, and something unique to be celebrated and embraced.
Visit the Science Playground Collections Window on the 1st floor of the Museum to view this special collaborative community art display!