The original ethno-classical ballet from the San Francisco Dance Company will be broadcast this Saturday, June 27 during the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter

SAN FRANCISCO, June 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Presidio Dance Theater’s “The Little Lantern Ballet©” has been selected by the United Nations Association and the United Nations Foundation as the culmination event of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the signing of the Charter of United Nations, the June 27, 2020.

At June 26, the United Nations SF Association and the United Nations Foundation will host a live reading of its Charter. The next day, June 27, partners UNA-SF, United Religions Initiative and Grace Cathedral, will host an interfaith service at Grace Cathedral, followed by a screening of “The Little Lantern Ballet©”. Both events will be streamed online.

The Charter of the United Nations was signed on June 26, 1945in San Francisco after the United Nations Conference on International Organization. The Presidio Dance Theater’s two decades of commitment to intercultural dialogue, the preservation of intangible heritage, the empowerment of women, human rights and social justice make the organization the perfect fit for the event. “Dance becomes a common language, a shared language of the soul“, says Executive and Artistic Director of the Presidio Dance Theatre, Sherene Melanie. Melania was named Ambassador to the US West Region by UNESCO’s International Dance Council in December 2019. She founded CID West in January 2020only the second US CID site in UNESCO CID history.

In 2006, Melania fell in love with At Ghassan Kanafani’s children’s story, “The Little Lantern”, and its ability to present how collaboration, despite gender, social status or pre-existing boundaries, transcends difficult circumstances and unites us. Melania created a dance adaptation that exposed audiences to the rich cultural traditions of the Near and Middle East, and generated an appreciation of our mutual humanity. With a captivating score by composers George Somi and Fathi Aljarah, and featuring the Aswat Choir, The Little Lantern Ballet© ​​is interspersed with storytelling and audience participation. Featuring costumes and sets designed and created by artists from the Mariinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg, Russiathis fusion of Near Eastern folk music and dance with classical ballet has thrilled audiences since its inception in 2014.

Registration for the event is available at https://www.un75-sf.org/.

Media Contact: Zina Goodall
[email protected]
(510) 421-0919

SOURCE Presidio Dance Theater