‘Pinkster: Joy is An Act of Resistance’ takes place this weekend in Highland, Kingston
Celebration concludes with Rosendale screening on June 8
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Transart’s “Pinkster: Joy is An Act of Resistance” offers a series of free events this weekend in Highland and Kingston, marking the Dutch-African celebration, concluding with a screening in Rosendale on June 8.
First brought to the Hudson Valley by Dutch settlers in the 1600s, Pinkster was celebrated on Pentecost (Pinksteren in Dutch), the seventh Sunday after Easter, where the settlers spent the week marking the holiday, leaving the enslaved to their own affairs. The celebration eventually became more of a Black experience.
“Rooted in both the African and Dutch experiences of the 17th Century, Pinkster belongs to us all,” Greer Smith, President/ CEO, Transart said in a press release.
This contemporary exploration offers a series of events, including a virtual reality experience, a day party, hip-hop and soul music, re-enactments, live percussion, fusion food inspired by Ulster County’s culinary history, a curated vendors’ market, a panel discussion, a film screening, dance and more.
The festivities kick off in Highland Saturday at the Sojourner Truth Statue at the Walkway Over the Hudson Park Visitor’s Center. Highlights include Congolese Dance at 2 p.m. by Mfouambila Kongo Dance Company. Then at 2:45 p.m. see “Raw Truth,” A short play about Sojourner Truth by Cesi Davidson. Bonita Oliver’s “Seeking Truth,” a virtual reality experience, tells the life story of Sojourner Truth at 4 p.m., which can be accessed at home online or at the Kingston library.
On Sunday morning, the festivities move to Kingston, starting at the Old Dutch Church on Main Street, with the talk “Pinkster Talk & Performance: Joy is An Act of Resistance!” at 10:30 a.m. with Chief Baba Neil Clarke; historian Lavada Nahon, Alex LaSalle, founder of Alma Moyo, and playwright Cesi Davidson
The panel will be preceded by musical and dramatic performances by reenactment group Pinkster Players, with actor Aixa Kendrick portraying Sojourner Truth, and others.
Then at 12 p.m., participants will assemble at the historic church for the Pinkster Walk at 1 p.m. The walk, led by the re-enactment group the Pinkster Players, Chief Baba Neil Clarke, and The Rev. Rob Sweeney of the Old Dutch, will celebrate the religious spirit of Pinkster.
The procession will trek and “dance the plank” from Old Dutch Church to St. James United Methodist Church, where Sojourner Truth worshipped to the Pinkster celebration at Academy Green. A Day Park and Market with music by DJ Stormin Norman, drumming, song and more, will take place after the walk.
Highlights include a tasting of Afro-Dutch-inspired foods with Tonya “The Food Griot” Hopkins, the Pinkster Players, Congolese dance by FUSHA Dance Troupe, another staging of “Raw Truth” and Alma Moyo’s percussion and dance.
Families are invited to share their history at the Family History Booth.
The festivities extend through next week, concluding on Wednesday, June 8 at 7 p.m. with a discussion and screening of the classic 1993 film “Sankofa,” featuring filmmaker Haile Gerima, at the Rosendale Theater, at 408 Main St. Rosendale.