The Wild Roses, a belly dance troupe from West Taghkanic who will perform Saturday night at the Woodstock Goddess Fest. Photo by Todd Hyson; from Goddess Fest's Facebook page.
Come bask in the energy of the Great Mother this weekend at the Colony Café in Woodstock. The 8th Annual Woodstock Goddess Fest kicks off Friday night with exuberant drumming of Fre Atlast and Birds of a Feather, after which the lineup segues into a series of delights from the East.
Dance from Korean and classical Indian traditions will start things off, just the beginning of a weekend with a strong focus on the graceful art of the belly dance. Ongoing workshops with Audie Belly Dance will help festival goers learn to wriggle their midsections. In between dance performances, sweet sounds from Shamsi Ruhe, the Veronica Kent Band with Songbird, the Liana Turner Band and Electric Rubyfish will invite celebrants to shake it up any way they want.
Saturday, the fun continues with more belly dance, including the Wild Roses; musical treats will include the genre-bending of Elizabeth Clark-Jerez and Mamalama and the spunky funk of Hemingway’s Cat. And on Sunday, spoken word will rule in the Goddess Poetry Fest, interspersed with still more music.
All weekend long, you can contemplate the offerings in the 2013 Woodstock Goddess Art Exhibition. Eighty percent of the proceeds will benefit the Ulster County battered women’s shelter, helping goddesses in need of safe surroundings and a fresh start. More information on the lineup can be found on the festival’s Facebook page.
8th Annual Woodstock Goddess Festival, Colony Café, 22 Rock City Road, Woodstock. Live entertainment from 7pm-12:30am on Friday, March 8; 7pm-midnight on Saturday, March 9, and 4-7pm on Sunday, March 10. Admission is $12 on Friday and Saturday nights, $7 on Sunday afternoon.
