BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//PYVOBJECT//NONSGML Version 1//EN BEGIN:VEVENT UID:events.uid.886@www.discovernikkei.org DTSTART:20080426T000000Z DTEND:20080426T000000Z DESCRIPTION:FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE\nApril 14\, 2008\n\nContact:\nGann Matsud a\n(310) 825-2488\npublicrelations-at-manzanarcommittee-dot-org\n\n\nUCLA KYODO TAIKO AND GRATEFUL CRANE ENSEMBLE TO PERFORM AT 39th ANNUAL MANZANAR PILGRIMAGE\n\nPilgrimage: Location of Manzanar After Dusk program also an nounced\; Seats still available on buses from Los Angeles\n\n\nLOS ANGELES — UCLA Kyodo Taiko and the Grateful Crane Ensemble will perform at the 39th Annual Manzanar Pilgrimage\, sponsored by the Manzanar Committee\, wh ich will be held on Saturday\, April 26\, 2008\, at the Manzanar National Historic Site\, located on US Highway 395 in California’s Owens Valley\, between the towns of Lone Pine and Independence\, California\, approximat ely 230 miles north of Los Angeles.\n\n“Continuing The Legacy” is the theme for this year’s program\, which begins at noon.\n\nUCLA Kyodo Taik o\, the first collegiate taiko group in North America\, was founded in 199 0 and made its debut at the Opening Ceremony of University of California\, Los Angeles’ commemoration of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Japanese American Internment\, which was held in 1992.\n\nLed by 2007-08 directors Elizabeth Ishida\, Emily Mukai and Kevin Suda\, UCLA Kyodo Taiko is compri sed entirely of UCLA students. They have performed annually at Nisei Week\ , Tofu Festival and the Lotus Festival in Los Angeles\, the Intercollegiat e Taiko Invitational\, during halftime at UCLA basketball games\, as well as the First Annual USA Sumo Open\, in addition to many other campus\, com munity and private events.\n\nFounded in July\, 2001 and led by playwright and producer Soji Kashiwagi\, Grateful Crane Ensemble is a non-profit the atre company that creates and presents educational and entertaining progra ms that tell the stories of sacrifices made by first and second generation Japanese Americans throughout history.\n\nGrateful Crane Ensemble has per formed at the Keiro Retirement Home and throughout the Japanese American c ommunity\, and since 2003\, they have performed their popular musical play \, “Camp Dance: The Music and the Memories\,” up and down the West Co ast\, as well as in Denver and New York.\n\nIn 2006\, they debuted “Niho nmachi: The Place to Be - A Musical Journey\, at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California as part of the celebration of the 100th Anniversary of San Francisco’s Japantown. The show also played at the Japan America Theatre in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo on March 30\, 20 08 and has received rave reviews.\n\nFeatured speakers at this year’s Pi lgrimage are Dr. Arthur A. Hansen\, Professor of History\, California Stat e University\, Fullerton and co-author of Manzanar Martyr\, Bruce Kaji\, a former Manzanar internee\, Mickie Okamoto\, President of the Nikkei Stude nt Union at UCLA and Stacy Iwata\, President of the Nikkei Student Union a t the University of California\, San Diego.\n\nThe afternoon program will conclude with the traditional interfaith service and Ondo dancing.\n\nIn a ddition to the daytime program\, the popular Manzanar At Dusk (MAD) progra m\, co-sponsored by the Friends of Manzanar and Lone Pine High School\, is scheduled from 4:00 PM to 7:30 PM at the Lone Pine High School auditorium \, located at 538 South Main Street (US Highway 395)\, in Lone Pine\, nine miles south of the Manzanar National Historic Site\, across the street fr om McDonald’s.\n\nThe program will begin with a screening of “Music Ma n of Manzanar\,” a short documentary film by Brian Maeda about Lou Frizz ell\, the music teacher at Manzanar. The filmmaker\, along with original m embers of the “Jive Bombers\,” will be in attendance for a brief quest ion and answer period following the screening.\n\nMAD participants will th en have the opportunity to interact with former internees in attendance to hear their personal stories and discuss the relevance of the concentratio n camp experience to present-day events and issues.\n\nThe Manzanar Commit tee has also announced that seats are still available on two air-condition ed buses to the Pilgrimage from Los Angeles.\n\nBuses will depart from in front of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles’ Little To kyo (369 East First Street\, between Alameda Street and Central Avenue) at 7:00 AM on April 26. All-day parking is available for $6.00 across from t he departure point.\n\nOne bus will leave Manzanar at 4:00 PM\, arriving i n Los Angeles at approximately 8:30 PM. The other bus will leave Manzanar at 7:30 PM\, arriving in Los Angeles at midnight.\n\nBoth buses will also take participants to the Interpretive Center at the Manzanar National Hist oric Site. Those wishing to participate in the Manzanar At Dusk program sh ould make reservations on the bus leaving Manzanar at 7:30 PM.\n\nReservat ions are now being accepted from members of the general public on a first- come\, first-served basis by sending e-mail to manzcomm-at-yahoo-dot-com o r by calling (323) 662-5102. The non-refundable fare is $40.00 per seat if reserved before April 21 or $50.00 after that date.\n\nPilgrimage partici pants are advised to bring their own lunch\, drink and snacks as there are no facilities to purchase food at the Manzanar National Historic Site (re staurants and fast food outlets are located in nearby towns). Water will b e provided at the site.\n\nFor more information about the Pilgrimage event s\, please contact the Manzanar Committee at (310) 532-7562 or (310) 908-7 508\, check their web site at http://www.manzanarcommittee.org or send e-m ail to info-at-manzanarcommittee-dot-org.\n\n-30- DTSTAMP:20241003T172827Z SUMMARY:UCLA Kyodo Taiko\, Grateful Crane Ensemble to Perform at 39th Annua l Manzanar Pilgrimage\, April 26\, 2008 URL:/en/events/2008/04/26/ucla-kyodo-taiko-grateful-crane-ensemble-to-perfo r/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR