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Celebrating the winter solstice with the world premiere of Return of the Sun
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Storyteller Brenda Wong Aoki and Emmy Award-winning composer Mark Izu, together with World Arts West, present the 2009 World Premiere of Return of the Sun, on Saturday, December 5, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Jewish Community Center (JCCSF).
A holiday show appropriate for all ages, Return of the Sun is a blend of dynamic storytelling, music and dance, weaving together Indian, Afro-Peruvian, Mayan, and Korean dance companies with Aoki’s own Japanese Noh and Kyogen training, telling the Japanese legend of Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess. Accompanied by world-class musicians led by jazz pioneer and composer Izu, this story highlights how dance and music can bring light in times of darkness. An excerpt of this compelling performance premiered to sold-out crowds at the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival.
In Japanese mythology Amaterasu was the daughter of the supreme Japanese deity who created the world. She was a beautiful and compassionate goddess who ruled both the sun and the heavenly fields of rice that fed the Japanese people. Her mean-hearted brother, the God of Darkness and Winter Storm, devastates the land and destroys many people. Amaterasu, although a warrior goddess, decides that more war will only create more suffering so she decides to retreat into a cave. Without her, the whole world is in darkness, and the rice fields begin to die while the people grow hungry. Aoki tells the story of how the people of the world come together and dance bringing the light back to the earth. Finally the Sun Goddess is coaxed from the cave, while dancers from the traditions of Mexico, Peru, Korea and India bring the story to life.
Tickets are $25 General Admission, $22 JCCSF Members and $15 students. Group Rates are also available. Phone (415) 292-1233 or visit www.jccsf.org
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