The 8th Annual Arab-American & 12th Annual North African

CULTURAL STREET FESTIVAL

SATURDAY JULY 10, 2010. 11AM-7PM.
"Rain or Shine!"

Located on Great Jones Street, Between Broadway & Lafayette in the Village.
Subway: N, R, W at Prince St. 6 at Bleecker St. F, V, at Broadway-Lafayette

Come out to celebrate our rich and diverse cultural heritage! Come out for a fun-filled day, and sample some of our delicious food! Vendors will line the street offering a variety of products, exhibiting original crafts, displaying Arabic literature, and playing regional music.

In between all the shopping and the food, take a time out at the Arguileh café, and enjoy truly unique dance performances, from belly dancing and Debka, to traditional drumming and the whirling dervish!

This event is sponsored in part by Dish Network/ART, and Etihad Airways, the National carrier of the UAE and the World's Leading Airline (World Travel Awards) and World's leading First Class (World Travel Awards).

We are also thrilled to raffle off to Festival attendees 2 economy-class tickets to anywhere Etihad flies to in the Arab world!

Finally, football fans don’t worry – we’re planning to stream live the 3rd place match between Uruguay and Germany.

For a quick look at last year's Festival check out this great video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq1xcF0kvTY

Here is a quick snapshot of this year’s Festival vendors:

• Argilas on Wheels: an outdoor Arabic cafe with Shisha and cold drinks
• SIDO Falafel: Everyone's favorite Falafel spot
• Arab Film Distribution: Film from throughout the Arab world & Diaspora
• Moroccan Prestige: Moroccan craft and Accessories
• Rashid Music: Arabic & North African music, CD recordings, DVDs
• Henna and Calligraphy Artist

We have also have a day full of LIVE PERFORMANCES! Including drummers, instrumental, debka troupe and live singers from all over the Arab world!

Check out a sampling of Festival Performers:

• DJ Ibrahim (Syria) - Well-known throughout NY and NJ, DJ Ibrahim has been spinning and mixing the latest Arab beats for over eight years. www.DJ-Jungle.com
• Omar Banaga (Sudan) – A native of Sudan he represents the rich diversity of traditional rhythms and melodies he grew up with.
• Eslam Farouk (Egypt) – Performing in the US for over twelve years, this Egyptian native has wowed audiences with his musical talent and vocal skills throughout NY and NJ.www.myspace.com/eslamfarouk
• Noureddine Al-Maghribi (Morocco) - Raised with music traditions and vocalist that are integral to Moroccan social celebrations, Nour draws on a repertoire that includes classical, popular (sha'abi), contemporary and Berber music traditions.www.noursinger.net
• Al Nujoom Debka Troup (Palestine) - Since they started in 2004, Alnujoon the Palestinian Debka troup became the most popular goup in the USA, they dance all kinds of dabka, palestinian, lebanees, syrian, iraqi, jordanian. www.mysapce.com/alnujoom
• Feras Jaber (Iraq) - is an Iraqi folk singer. He specializes in singing ‘Mawawil’, which are popular love songs, typically sung solo in a plaintive tone. The songs he has chosen are part of the folk heritage of Baghdad and the South of Iraq.
• Cheb Yassin (Algeria) - A rising star, he has been performing and entertaining audiences in the US for many years and is launching his new album shortly (www.myspace.com/chabyassin). Check out Yassin as he rocked last year’s Festival: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TEdNy2n3B4
• Ahlam (Tunisia)
• Mohammed Hayi (Yemen)
• Yasser Darwish (Whirling Dervish- Egypt) - An Egyptian native, Yasser Darwish has been performing traditional folk dancing for decades, appearing all over the world, including the renowned Lincoln Center and the United Nations. http://egyptiancelebration.com