National Museum of the American Indian Hosts Three-Day Multicultural Festival on Inaugural Weekend

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian will host “Out of Many: A Multicultural Festival of Music, Dance and Story” from Friday, Jan. 18, through Sunday, Jan. 20. The three-day program to commemorate the inauguration of President Barack Obama will feature daily performances of live music, dancing and storytelling in the museum from a variety of cultural traditions. All performances are free and open to the public. More than 12 groups will appear, including:

• Tradiciones Bolivianas, who perform traditional dances of the Andes
• Loren Anderson, an Alutiiq storyteller
• Arax Armenian Dance Ensemble
• Buddhist Ekoji, Taiko drumming
• Flory Jagoda Trio, Sefardic music
• Halau O‘Aulani, who will perform Native Hawaiian music and dance
• KanKouran, West African dancers from Senegal
• Vicky Leyva, Afro-Peruvian singer
• The Wild Zappers, a hearing-impaired dance troupe

In addition to the inauguration festival, the National Museum of the American Indian will present a photo exhibition, “A Century Ago…They Came as Sovereign Leaders” Jan. 15-Feb. 25. In honor of the inauguration, the exhibition focuses on President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1905 inaugural parade and the six great chiefs who participated in the procession: Buckskin Charlie (Ute), American Horse (Oglala Sioux), Quanah Parker (Comanche), Geronimo (Chiricahua Apache), Hollow Horn Bear (Brule Sioux) and Little Plume (Piegan Blackfeet).

The museum will be closed to the public Monday, Jan. 21, because of the museum’s proximity to the swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol.

More information is available on the museum’s website: www.AmericanIndian.si.edu.

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