Yuba City, November 21st, 2009 - The Walt Disney Company has created much magic through its films, TV shows, theme parks and other properties. This year's "Way, Way, Way Off Broadway" captured that magic with Disney as its primary theme.
The "What Dreams May Come" themed "Way, Way, Way Off Broadway" was set for Saturday at the Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds which included traditional “Bhangra”, an exceptional performance at the peak of the event by Punjabi American Heritage Society Dancers.
"Disney is everybody's favorite," said Paul DeMeritt, who co-directs "Broadway" with Staci Johnson. "Like when football players come off the field after the Super Bowl, they always say, 'I'm going to Disneyland.' We all have that special childlike place in our heart, and Disney captures that, so everyone agreed that was the best theme (for this year's 'Broadway')."
Previous years have been centered on the Beatles, Elvis and a USO world tour.
"Broadway" is a showcase of local arts community talent. The performers for this year's showcase included groups such as The Acting Company, the Marysville Charter Academy for the Arts, the FCS Players, Jacque's Dance Expressions, the River Valley High School Theatre Company, the Punjabi American Heritage Society Dance Troup, the Borgamaria Lyric Opera, the Sutter North Band and Review and the Creative Light Theatre.
Individual performers included Candee Jensen-Parker, Dahni Piro, Keegan Alan, Kristine Xiong, Jeff Poppinga, Kaylee Poppinga and Alex Cesena.
Punjabi American Heritage Dance Group included 25 dancers from the ages of 7 to 50. Aman Sahota sung live Boliyan, 4 drummers played in unison to create a unique live music. Dance was choreographed by Harjeet Singh. Dholis (drummers) names are: Simarjit (Sam) Takhar, Shaunvir (Shaun) Chima, Ravi Kang, and Amar Gill.
Participation in these kinds of events not only helps promote art and music but also give an opportunity to built bridges and make friendship with other communities. Out of twenty six items, another South Asian performance was Jacque’s Dance Expressions – Bollywood! based on Oscar winning son of Slum Dog Millionaire movie written by India’s highly acclaimed poet and writer Gulzar (Sampooran Singh) and sung by Sukhvinder Singh from Punjab. This item was also very well received by audience.
Audience paid $50 to $70 per ticket to the house full event. "Broadway's" primary goal is not only to showcase local talent, but for the Rotary Club of Yuba City to award a $1,000 scholarship to an area youth to pursue his or her performing arts goals.
Proceeds generated by the show will also benefit the Yuba-Sutter Regional Arts Council's efforts to renovate the old Sutter Theatre into a modern performing arts center.
The Punjabi American Heritage Society was founded in 1993 with a purpose of promoting friendship and cross cultural understanding in California. PAHS is in process of building first permanent exhibit in a local museum in Yuba City, dedicated to preserve the history of Punjabi American pioneers to California, USA