Puerto Rican Party in the Bronx NY

Join the Puerto Rican Party in the Bronx NY, on Wednesday December 5th. Puerto Rican is only one of our favorite Bronx flavors, brought out by a Coquito tasting!!! Wednesday, December 5, 2012 5:30pm to 7:30pm BCA Bronx Culture Trolley Night Readings and Conversations Caridad De La Luz “La Bruja” and Coquito Masters Qualifier 2nd floor North Wing The International Coquito Tasting Federation and The Bronx Museum of the Arts’ Community Advisory Council invite you to hop off the BCA’s Bronx Culture Trolley at BxMA for an evening of coquito and poetry! Hear Bronx poet Caridad De La Luz “La Bruja” discuss her recent book The Poetician and take part in a Coquito Masters Qualifying round. Caridad De La Luz is a Bronx-born Performer known as LA BRUJA, considered one of America's leading spoken word artists. She is a renaissance woman that has performed internationally as well as in respected venues such as The Apollo, The Museum of Natural History, and the famed Nuyorican Poets Café where she began her career. NY Times called her "a Juggernaut" after the 2009 run of her musical Boogie Rican Blvd. where she played 7 different characters and wrote the musical score alongside famed Afro-Rican Jazz artist William Cepeda. Her acting career has taken her from the stage to film, she has appeared in several movies including Bamboozled, Down to the Bone, El Vacilon and Gun Hill Road, which features the title track ‘Nuyorico’ and four more of La Bruja’s songs. Her unique music has crossed over internationally with her debut album Brujalicious and her latest release For Witch It Stands both available on iTunes. She is featured on Prince Royce’s new album Phase II and Bobby Sanabria’s upcoming album Multiverse. Best known for her captivating performance on Russell Simmons' HBO Def Poetry Jam, she is the Founder of the Latinas 4 Life spoken word movement, a board member of Voices UnBroken and works with youth throughout the country teaching the benefits of self-expression and art for positive change. For more info go to www.labrujamusic.com For the past eleven years Coquito Masters founded by Deborah Quinones has been an annual coquito making contest that seeks to find the best coquito maker. The event started in 2001 when a close family friend, the traditional maker of coquito for her circle, had passed away during the previous year. So she came up with a plan: have all of her friends bring their versions of coquito to her annual ‘tree trimming’ party and find the best coquito. The winner strolled around the living room in a mock victory walk to applause from friends and family. Coquito is often referred to as Puerto Rican egg nog, but it is much more. A product of the blending of global ingredients like coconuts from China, cinnamon from India, vanilla from South America, nutmeg and cloves from the Banda Islands and rum from the Caribbean. It is a distant cousin to posset (England) rompope (Costa Rica, El Salvador and Mexico), rompopo (Guatemala and Honduras), punch de crème (Trinidad and Tobago) and cola de mono (Chile). It is a metaphor for Puerto Ricans who themselves are a blend of indigenous Taino Indian, African and European heritages. Traditionally the beverage is served during the Christmas and 3 kings Day holidays. However, since no one person can fairly (or soberly!) taste 48 samples of coquito, sites are set up around the boroughs as official Coquito Masters qualifying events. The Coquito Masters season starts from Sept 15th the kick off of Hispanic Heritage Month and ends on weekend of 3 Kings Day with the Coquito Bar Crawl. Everyone signs a wavier and must show ID to taste. ----------------------------------------33------------------------ You are invited to join us for our Special Bronx Culture Birthday Trolley Bronx Council on the Arts turns 50 Bronx Culture Trolley turns 10 Birthday Cake Click here and RSVP to join us! The Bronx Council on the Arts (BCA) invites you to join us at the Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos for a gala celebration to honor the Bronx Council on the Arts’ 50th anniversary (December 1962) and the Bronx Culture Trolley’s 10th anniversary (December 2002). Directions to Hostos. We will honor the many friends who have supported the Bronx Council on the Arts and its programs in the form of funding, donations, and publicity, and our community who we have enjoyed serving over the years. Baron Ambrosia Baron Ambrosia, BCA’s 50th Anniversary Ambassador and TV host of the Cooking Channel’s The Culinary Adventures of Baron Ambrosia, will host this evening of music, performances and special guests, all taking place at Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos (450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street). The evening will feature music by DJ Paulo Rojas, with performances by poet, singer, actor, comedian, and spoken word artist Flaco Navaja and dancer/choreographer Milteri Tucker. A special anniversary/birthday cake will be provided by Brees Delicious Delights. Paulo Rojas FPO-02a Flaco Navaja Milteri Tucker JoseBuscaglia--FRONTIMAGE 2The evening begins at the Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos (Hostos Community College, 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street) for a 5:00pm closing reception of Puerto Rico In Its Labyrinth, Chronicles of a Country and a World in Crisis, an exhibition of works on paper and sculpture by Puerto Rican artist, educator and social scientist José Buscaglia. The exhibition, on view in the Main Gallery, comments on the legacy of colonialism and the history of oppression in the Caribbean, the Americas and Africa in the midst of a global crisis and change. Plaza de la Identidad: Public Art Under House Arrest, in the Project Room, is an installation of Buscaglia’s 2003 public work commissioned by the Puerto Rican legislature which, until recently, was kept in storage because it was deemed too nationalistic for public display. The show will be on view through December 8th. Buscaglia A special Conversation with José Buscaglia will take place in the gallery from 3:30 to 4:30pm. Meet the artist as he addresses many of the issues raised in the exhibition. BxMA comboFirst Stop: The Bronx Museum of the Arts A Book Signing with Caridad De La Luz “La Bruja” who will discuss her first published book of poetry, The Poetician! Coquito Tasting Contest presented by the International Coquito Tasting Federation. Free Guided Tours of the museum’s exhibitions: Urban Archives: The Rituals of Chaos, Bronx Lab: Style Wars, smARTcorner: China and Turkey, and Bronx Portraits 2003 + 2012. En Foco pix-web Second Stop: On the way back to Hostos, we’ll swing by Pregones Theater where En Foco’s Touring Gallery presents Relaciones & Relatos / Relations & Tale, an exhibition of photographs by Alex Morel and a Meet-the-Artist reception. Back at the Gallery... The festivities continue with a special, and most likely off-key, “Happy Birthday” sing-a-long and cake-cutting at 7:00pm. And then, we let them eat cake! Andy Gonzalez Also at 7:00pm, in the Hostos Repertory Theater, you can enjoy a free performance by Latin jazz artist Andy Gonzalez.