For Immediate Release: October 20, 2006

Multicultural Youth Troupe to Perform
Traditional Indian Dances Celebrating Diwali

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(Oakland, CA)— A troupe of school-aged dancers training under the internationally-renowned Kathak dancer Purnima Jha will perform traditional East Indian dances to live music when Oakland Public Library celebrates Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights. Among the most beautiful of Indian holidays, Diwali is a five-day festival celebrated each fall that honors the renewal of life, the triumph of light over darkness, and of goodness over evil. Don't miss this appearance by what may be the only multicultural troupe ever to perform traditional Kathak dance. The performance will be at 6:30 pm on Monday, November 6, at Golden Gate Branch Library, 5606 San Pablo Avenue, in Oakland.

Oakland Public Library's eighth annual Diwali celebration features young dancers from Anna Yates Elementary School in Emeryville. The group is led by artistic director Purnima Jha, of Dance and Rhythm of India, a renowned artist and scholar who has performed for audiences around the world. Purnima is a past recipient of the Isadora Duncan Dance Award and India's "Great Daughter of the Soil" award in the arts. She learned to dance from her father, the legendary Natraj Shanker Dev Jha, who was one of the great Kathak artists of the 20th century.

Kathak, which literally means "storyteller," is a theatrical Northern Indian dance form originally performed as a religious rite in Hindu temples. It evolved into a court dance featuring elaborate costumes under the patronage of the Mughal dynasty.

As with other Indian festivals, Diwali is celebrated differently by region. In Northern India, celebrants honor the divine couple, Rama and Sita. In Bengal, Diwali is associated with the goddess Kali. In Gujarat, the festival pays tribute to Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. Houses are whitewashed and thresholds are decorated with elaborate designs of colored powder. Exchange of sweets and the explosion of fireworks accompany the celebration, which many South Asians also celebrate in the West.

Golden Gate Branch has a notable collection of Punjabi, Hindu, and bilingual titles for adults and children, including videos. For more information about the collection or the free family Diwali program, call the Golden Gate Library at (510) 597-5023 or visit the Library's Web site at www.oaklandlibrary.org. Please refrain from wearing scented products to library events. To request sign interpretation, or other accommodation, call the number above or (510) 834-7446 (TTY) at least five working days prior to the event. The Oakland Public Library is a department of the City of Oakland.

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