Children of the Rainforest:
Alyo African Dance and Drumming

Saturday, January 22
Performances at 10:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m.

Come out of the cold and into the tropics for African dance and drumming with the Children of the Rainforest performances at Olbrich Botanical Gardens on Saturday,

January 22.  The Alyo African Dance and Drumming group from Chicago returns to Olbrich with high-energy dance and rhythm.

This group of children and teens will perform their program called Woza, a Zulu expression meaning “Come on!” Alyo recently performed this program at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.  The company will unveil new dance works in Woza including “Toyi Toyi,” a tribute to the youth initiation of the Soweto 1976 uprising in South Africa.   

Performances will be at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.  Tickets for Children of the Rainforest are $3 for adults and $2 for children ages 3 to 12.  Children ages 2 and under are free.  Tickets are available at the door before each performance.

Visitors also can enjoy a free coffee tasting provided by Just Coffee, a local fair trade coffee producer, from 1 to 3 p.m. in the lobby at the Gardens.

The Children of the Rainforest series celebrates the cultures of rainforest regions around the world and fosters an attitude of stewardship toward the natural environment.  The series is sponsored by William and Joyce Wartmann.   

A second Children of the Rainforest performance featuring Polynesian Hula will be held on February 19 with performances at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. by Madison’s Hula Ho’oli dance group.

After the Children of the Rainforest performance, visit Olbrich’s own tropics in the Bolz Conservatory and take a walk through the Coffee Culture exhibit. Learn how coffee is grown and processed and the role it plays in human culture.  Children will enjoy learning about coffee in the make-believe coffee shop, Kids Coffee Corner, inside the Conservatory.

The Alyo African Dance and Drumming group is a non-profit cultural and educational arts organization. Its mission is to develop and maintain an Afro-centric, youth-based, arts and education program. Alyo offers high-quality training and performance opportunities in the dance, song, rhythm, and folklore of the African Diaspora.

For more information, call 608-246-4550.  Olbrich Botanical Gardens is located in Madison, Wisconsin on the shore of Lake Monona at 3330 Atwood Avenue.  Visit Olbrich's website at www.olbrich.org.