Photo courtesy of The Altamont School.
The Altamont School will host a student-led Multicultural Dance Festival Feb. 9, 5:30 – 8 p.m.
The event, organized by junior Nivedha Goli and sponsored by CPAP Plus, will present a variety of dance styles, including Salsa, belly dancing, ballet, Kathak, Bharatanatyam and other Indian classical dance forms. The event also will include informational booths representing almost a dozen cultures.
Goli organized the first Multicultural Dance Festival last year as part of her work in The Altamont School’s C. Kyser Miree Ethical Leadership Center, which guides students in long-term, community-focused initiatives of their own design. “The Miree Center has been a crucial part in the creation of this festival; it has granted me resources, connections, and valuable knowledge needed for the festival to happen,” Goli said.
Green and White Creative Illustration Dance Day Celebration Instagram Post - 1
Goli’s work with the Miree Center is inspired by a decade of experience dancing in the classical Indian Bharatanatyam form. She typically performs with the Nrityanjali studio, but for the festival she will dance a duet with Altamont classmate Meghana Hiremagalore. The choice highlights the community emphasis of both the festival and the Miree Center. “My hopes for having a multicultural dance festival were to create not only a sense of representation but also a sense of cultural inclusivity, learn more about the history and importance of dance in these different cultures, discover talent in our student body, and bring people together,” Goli said.
The Multicultural Dance Festival, in The Altamont School’s Cabaniss-Kaul Center for the Arts, is open to the public, free-of-charge and wheelchair accessible. Address: 4801 Altamont Rd. South, Birmingham, AL 35222.
Submitted by The Altamont School
