Corrections or additions?
These articles were prepared for the August 18, 2004
issue of U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Dragon Boats Race for the Cure
You may be familiar with the curved pink ribbon now associated with
races to benefit breast cancer – even some products like yogurt and
women’s razors have adopted the ubiquitous pink as their manufacturers
contribute a portion of sales to breast cancer research. But that
little pink ribbon will appear in a new setting this Saturday and
Sunday, August 21 and 22, at the third annual Breast Cancer Survivor
Dragon Boat Festival to benefit breast cancer research. The event,
which takes place in Mercer County Park, has been expanded this year
to include an Asian Festival.
Dragon Boat racing began in southern China more than 2,000 years ago.
This traditional race is based on the legend of the ancient patriot
poet Qu Yuan, a court minister, who was banished from the state for
advocating reforms. In 278 B.C. when Qu Yuan heard that his home had
been invaded, he drowned himself in the Mi Lo River. Fisherman tried
to save him and even threw rice dumplings into the water to prevent
his body from being eaten by fish. Rice dumplings are traditionally
eaten on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival.
In the United States, most Dragon Boats range between 40 and 120 feet
long with anywhere from 20 to 48 paddlers per boat. The traditional
Dragon Bboat is made of teak and can weigh close to 600 pounds. The
dragon’s head adorns the front of each vessel and the rear carries the
tail. The crew consists of paddlers sitting two abreast, a steer
person, and a drummer who sits at the head of the boat and beats out a
paddling rhythm for the crew. Depending on the competition intensity,
paddles can hit the water between 80 and 100 times a minute and finish
a quarter mile race in a little under three minutes.
The Princeton Warriors, a non-profit organization, is part of the
Central Jersey Dragon Boat Club, established in the summer of 2002.
Members are made up of men, women, and young adults age 14 and over.
At the Regatta, about 750 athletes will compete, including open men
and women’s mixed teams. Joining the Princeton Warriors this year are
the Wall Street Dragons, the Philadelphia Police, the Schuylkill
Dragons Purple; the Schuylkill Dragons Gold; Gum Fong Restaurant; and
Hope Afloat.
Chinese Dragon Boat and Asian Festival, Saturday andSunday, August 21 and 22, Mercer County Park, West Windsor. For moreinformation, call 732-355-0647 or E-mailprincetondragoneer@comcast.net.Top Of PageAuditionsStage Auditions:Kelsey Theater has auditions for several fall productions at MercerCommunity College.Playful Theater Productions, “Oliver!” on Tuesday and Wednesday,September 7 and 8, 7 to 9:30 p.m. Production opens Friday, November19. Must be eight or older to audition. Call 609-499-1388 forappointment.Pennington Players, “A Christmas Story,” Saturday, September 18, 10a.m.; and Sunday, September 19, noon to 4 p.m. The show opens onFriday, December 10. Call 609-737-7529 for appointment.Voice Auditions:Voices Chorale auditions are Tuesday, August 24, 4:30 p.m. at MusicTogether, 66 Witherspoon Street. Also Tuesday to Thursday, September7, 8, and 9 at the same location. Call Sandy at 609-799-2211.www.voiceschorale.org.Princeton Pro Musica is auditioning volunteer and pair choral singersfor its season. Call 609-683-5122 to schedule an appointment.www.princetonpromusica.org.Cantabile seeks skilled singers for the season and for travel toSweden in summer, 2005. Call732-560-7132, ext. 2 for information.www.cantabilechamberchorale.org.Volunteer:Superior Court of New Jersey seeks citizen volunteers for its ChildPlacement Review Boards. All volunteers must complete trainingprogram. Call Paul Andrews at 609-571-4027 for information.Available:Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation announced that the “Live Music for DanceProgram” will be open to New Jersey’s dance community for the firsttime in 2005. The program helps dance companies meet the expense ofmusicians’ rehearsal and performance fees, composer commissioningfees, and copying costs. Application deadline is Friday, October 1.Guidelines and application procedures are at www.amc.net.Jacobs Music Company is leading an international “Peace Piano event topromote world peace and help needy children in other nations throughmusic. The piano will circulate during the month of October in NewJersey and Philadelphia area. Talented child pianists will have theopportunity to perform on the piano onstage during a “Play for Peace.”To participate in the perfom-a-thon, call Mark Love at 215-568-0021 orvisit www.jacobsmusic.comPrevious StoryNext StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
