Halloween Parade In NYC: They Only Come Out at Night

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2 million spectators. Thousands of marchers, dressed as everything you could possibly come up with- zombies, rescued Chilean miners, skeletons. The only major parade in the country held at night - kicking off at 8pm in Soho, going up a very dark 6th Avenue in Greenwich Village and ending up in Chelsea. Cut back several blocks this year for the city to save on police overtime. Called "one of the 100 things to do before you die" and one of the top events of the year. Traffic congestion, barricaded sidewalks, subway trains full of weird creatures. It was the 38th edition of the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade, once a small neighborhood event that went along several blocks in the Village, now one of the biggest parades in the city.

For more pictures, see http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-511624

Oriental Magazine

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Feature article about PURE NYC and PURE Tokyo from the 22nd Issue of Oriental - the leading Russian bellydance magazine

PURE is mentioned in Habibi eZine 2004 - The Year in Review

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PURE, spearheaded by Kaeshi and Darshan. Hard to describe in summary (visit the site), this was a dance event in support of Peace, September 9-11, 2004. It involved first, a performance at the World Culture Open Diversity Festival in Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center, then on the 11th, a processional performance, starting at East Coast Memorial in Battery Park and ending at the Bethesda Fountain in Manhattan, New York, NY USA. 

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Kolo danced by hundreds in New York City

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"Women's bodies historically have been and continue to be the source of great trauma, ridicule, torment, and violence. Women from former Yugoslavia specifically have witnessed or grievously experienced first hand the use of women's bodies as a tool of war. The Serbs, to 'ethnically cleanse' the Muslims through forced pregnancy, violated some 20,000 to 50,000 women. Often beatings and abuse is reenacted in their own homes," says Nada. "Dance is one of the most ancient forms of prayer and healing," continues Nada, whose name means Hope in Croatian language.

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The tribal phenomenom

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Athena Najat, member of PURE NYC writes about the Tribal phenomenom for her masters degree in performance studies from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. Her paper was presented at the 18th World Congress on Dance Research in Argos, Greece, (organized by IOFA Greece and the International Dance Council CID-UNESCO, in collaboration with the Municipality of Argos and the national Greek Dances Theatre "Dora Stratou".)

Download Athena Najat's paper to read it.

PURE: Dance of power, dance of peace

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In mid-May 2004, when I responded to a notice in Bellydanceny.com that Kaeshi and Darshan were looking for dancers for an art project, I had no idea how much impetus this would generate in so short a time. Neither did anyone else, including the organizers. Kaeshi is the founder of Bellyqueen, a dance company that performs traditional raks sharqi as well as blends of other global dance styles within a Middle Eastern format. Because of their distinctive approach and exceptional technique, Bellyqueen became the first professional bellydance company to appear for a six-month engagement at Aladdin's Desert Passage in Las Vegas. Kaeshi has also toured extensively, performing at a World Peace concert in Bali and traveling around the United States with the Lollapalooza Music Festival in 2003. This year she was the dance captain for the Bellydance Superstars and Desert Roses troupes which performed in fifty-eight U.S. and Canadian cities.

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PURE: Putting it together, Part 1

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A seemingly eternal line of dancers stretches out in front and behind me as I step out of the N-R subway exit and begins to glide towards Astor Place, New York City. The warmth of this mid July day pours into me... I breathe in. Entranced by the sound of the drums, I lift my arms with my sisters as we process towards the first destination on the map. The ritual has begun.

On July 17th, 2004,the performers of PURE took to the streets to share their love of dance and music with the public and to pay homage to specific sites in lower Manhattan. PURE, an acronym for "Public Urban Ritual Experiment," is comprised of 29 dancers and fourmusicians. The goal of this event: to bring a message of healing, peace and the power of community through ancient traditions of dance and ritual.

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