The Asian Coalition of Tallahassee, led by artist Aurora Torres-Hansen, delights in celebrating the artistic ambition of Asian artists at this year’s Experience Asia Festival, set for Sept. 28 at Tom Brown Park.
The event opens at 10 a.m. and will end at 6 p.m. The Opening Ceremonies begin at 11:45 a.m., followed by performances from Taiko Drummers, a Youth Sports Group from Taiwan, the Hakka Choral Group Yun Dance Company, the Philippine Performing Arts Company from Tampa, and many others. With such a lively line-up, Torres-Hansen invites everyone to join in and celebrate Asian arts and culture.
Dancing through life
With a continent that spreads 31,033,131 km² (according to the Worldometer) and a population that makes up approximately 59% of the globe’s people, it should come as no surprise that Asian culture is vast and diverse.
Although the land has separated over time into the six regions of Central, East, North, South, Southeast, and West Asia, the arts and culture of these areas, all blend to inform and influence each other, creating a unique Asian experience across art, architecture, music, literature, lifestyle, philosophy, food, politics and religion.
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The Asian Coalition of Tallahassee (ACT) revels in all of these forms to unite the Asian Communities in the Big Bend Area and celebrate all the beauty Asian culture contributes to our world.
In 2004, several community members, including Clyde Diao, Aurora Torres-Hansen, and then-mayor John Marks, gathered to create an organization that would do just that. Twenty-two years later, the ACT thrives and continues to bring quality, family-friendly activities to Tallahassee.
Though the ACT first started at Ponce de Leon Park with a surprisingly happy unexpected attendance of 2,500, the event has moved to accommodate its ever-growing artists and attendees to experience Asian art through the people and passions rooted in the culture.
One artist whose roots have intertwined with ACT over the past two decades is Aurora Torres-Hansen. For 35 years, she has lived in Tallahassee and created in and with the community.
Torres-Hansen’s commitment to the community is evident through her active involvement in organizations like Florida State University’s Asian Student Union, the North Florida Hispanic Association, Cooper-Morgan Dance Theater Summer Intensive, Tallahassee State College Dance Company, and The Asian Coalition of Tallahassee.
“The common thread that connects these organizations is that everyone goes home with a better understanding of the different cultures that are represented in our community,” Torres-Hansen said.
Education leads to activism
Along with her commitment to the community, Torres-Hansen brings a lifetime of dedication to the practical and educational aspects of music and dance to her leadership. Having grown up in the Philippines, immersed in a family of musicians whose goal was to outdo each other, Torres-Hansen learned to play the piano from her mother and her great uncle (a tenor in the Metropolitan Opera of the Philippines), the marimba at her mother’s insistence and the ukelele — especially at Christmas.
Torres-Hansen commends her education in the Philippines for always including the arts and solidifying a strong base for her to pursue dance as her art form and profession.
At the age of 7, she joined The Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. Through dance, she met many dignitaries at the performances, like Lyndon Johnson, Princess Sirikit of Thailand, Richard Nixon, Jerry Lewis, and several notable Filipinos.
In addition to receiving her Science Journalism/Mass Communications and Dance degree from Iowa State University, where Alvin Ailey was a regular guest teacher, Torres-Hansen worked with key dance artists like Greta Monserrat Aguilar, Joji Felix Velarde, Libertad Fajardo, Lucrecia Ursula, and Geoffrey Holder.
Torres-Hansen recalls a moment with Holder that changed her life, “ [He] stood in front of me and said, ‘You must continue to dance. You were meant to dance.’ I did not know whether to jump for joy or faint,” laughs Torres-Hansen. ”That sealed my love for dance.”
That love evolved from stage to classroom as a certified dance instructor of Ballet and Movement, a skill she later took to Tallahassee’s Parks and Recreation to provide dance education to the community. Her activism evolved from this when she noticed the rash of Asian individuals being hurt because of their ethnicity.
“It was a rude awakening for me when a man put his pointer finger on my chest and said, ‘Get out of my America,’ ” says Torres-Hansen. ”That incident empowered me to work against subtle racist comments.” And for her, education is the answer. Torres-Hansen relishes the moments after class, where she has candid conversations with students to engage in meaningful discussions about dance, community, and activism.
Experience Asia Festival
Torres-Hansen enjoys creating festivals that support Asian artists as much as she loves being one. Although her accolades speak to Torres-Hansen’s influence, she emphasizes that ACT would not be such a strong organization if it were not for the many members who have helped shape it over the years. For her, the ACT embodies the heartbeat of the Asian community in Tallahassee and leads to a deeper understanding of the art produced within it.
This year’s Experience Asia Festival, presented by ACT and co-sponsored by the City of Tallahassee and generous sponsors, will feature many local, national, and international performers, arts, crafts, demonstrations, exhibits, and a children’s play area with games from different Asian countries.
If you go
What: Experience Asia Festival
When: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28
Where: Tom Brown Park, 501 Easterwood Drive
Contact: 850-321-1114; tallahasseearts.org
Dr. Christy Rodriguez de Conte is the feature writer for the Council on Culture & Arts (COCA). COCA is the capital area’s umbrella agency for arts and culture (tallahasseearts.org).