Young Audiences of Western New York is teaming up with the Albright-Knox Art Gallery this Friday March 12 to give families the opportunity to go Around the World with Young Audiences through interactive experiences in art, dance, and storytelling.  Presented as part of the popular Gusto at the Gallery series, admission to the gallery and participation in events are free to the public.

The programs offered with Around the World on Friday include interactive workshops and performances at the Albright-Knox from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the classrooms and auditorium of the gallery.  Each activity explores a different culture or group of cultures.
 
"Gusto events are a great way for Young Audiences to share the diversity and talent of our teaching artists with the public," said Cynnie Gaasch, Executive Director of Young Audiences WNY. "Our programs are educational and artistically excellent.  Because they are most often offered in school many people don't know about all of the fantastic programs we offer.  We love presenting in the family-friendly atmosphere of the Albright-Knox."

Families will make avatars or cherry blossom out of paper in Kyoko Roszmann's Origami Workshop and Sarah Hooper's Family Dance/Salsa Workshop will kick-off the night's activities in the gallery's classrooms, followed by performances in the auditorium by Lorna Czarnota and Clyde Alifiju Morgan.
 
At 6:30 p.m. Czarnota will present This World of Ours: Stories from Many Cultures, a dynamic performance featuring stories from China, Ireland, Africa, and the Middle East.  Czarnota's performance will be immediately followed by Morgan's Afro-Brazilian Dance & Music at 7:30 p.m. Morgan's fast-paced performance features a brilliant array of dance and music reflecting the multi-cultural traditions of Brazil.

Young Audiences WNY, is one of 30 Young Audiences affiliates across the country.  They present hundreds of  programs, plus dozens of residencies.  Their teaching artists provide schoolchildren, their educators and families, with multi-disciplinary, multi-session education through the arts.  These residencies create meaningful connections between artists and young people that might otherwise not be exposed to the arts--especially arts integrated into school curricula.
 
Young Audiences also appeared at the Buffalo Powder Keg Festival with some of their teaching artists, and you can view a slideshow of the fun families had with Kyoko Roszmann, Cindy Hanna, Jen Russo , and Glenn Colton  there, here.  To learn more about Young Audiences programing, visit their website at www.yawny.org.