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<center><b>Upcoming Events</b></center>

Ballet company's

annual event coming

TUSAYAN — One of the big ballet events of the year will be here Aug. 19 with the arrival of the Summer Performing Arts Festival 2000.

The festival, which is put on by the Grand Canyon Ballet Company and AirStar Helicopters, will be Aug. 19 with events beginning at 6 p.m. at the Grand Canyon Community Recreation Center.

Hors d’oeuvres and a raffle will start off the evening with the performance “Let’s Fly” scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. in the rec center’s multi-purpose room.

Principal dancers from Ballet Arizona, Yen-Li Chen Zhang and Qisheng Zhang, will grace the stage with “The Leaves Are Fading,” and “Adagietto.”

“We are so fortunate to have this incredible talent come to the Grand Canyon,” said Sonja Rojas, artistic director for the Grand Canyon Ballet Company. “Not only does Yen-Li and Qisheng Zhang inspire our local ballerinas, they bring a level of awareness in dance and the arts to this community.”

Yen-Li is scheduled to teach master classes to the local ballet company the week prior to the festival. Rojas said that was made possible by a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

“This grant is such a blessing,” Rojas said. “We will springboard into many more opportunities from this.”

The company is slated to perform on the Hopi Reservation in October and has been invited to perform in Utah in 2001.

The Summer Performing Arts Festival is celebrating its third year and will raise money for the nonprofit ballet company to fund future shows, travel expenses and costumes.

Tickets are on sale at the rec center. Adults are $25 and children under 12 are $12.

Tickets will be available at the door, however, seating will be limited.

For more information, call 638-9788.

Cultural series

continues at GC

GCNP — The award-winning musical group, "History Alive! Boys," brings its diverse program of early American history to Grand Canyon Saturday and Sunday as part of the continuing Cultural Enrichment Series.

The group of three from Pennsylvania will interpret America's westward movement through a musical program that is "a mix of interpretation, education and history flavored with entertainment," said Robin White, supervisory park ranger.

The group, formed three years ago, has appeared up and down the East Coast and is highly recognized for its interpretation of American history.

The performances will be held at the South Rim's outdoor Mather Amphitheater, located behind the park's Visitor Center near the Rim Trail. Times for the performances are Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.

White encourages visitors and community members to attend the free programs.

Grand Canyon National Park and the Grand Canyon Association co-sponsor the Cultural Enrichment Series. GCA is a nonprofit organization with a mission to cultivate knowledge, break down social and cultural barriers and enlist discovery and stewardship for the benefit of GCNP and its visitors.

For further information, contact Robin White at 638-7765 or Richard Ullman at 638-7830.

Women’s river trip

subject of TV film

TEMPE — A river trip down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon will be the subject of a KAET-TV program to be aired Thursday evening.

“Writing Down the River” shares the experiences and reflections of four women writers — unlikely companions and even less likely adventurers — who raft together down the river.

Veteran journalist Linda Ellerbee, novelist Denise Chavez, naturalist Ruth Kirk and writer and painter Barbara Thomas meet their fears head-on as they renew and re-examine their relationships with nature.

“Writing Down the River” airs Thursday on KAET at 7 p.m. and 9:40 p.m.

The program was inspired by Kathleen Jo Ryan’s award-winning book “Writing Down the River: Into the Heart of the Grand Canyon,” a collection of Ryan’s photographs and essays by 15 distinguished female writers, including the four featured in the film.

Each of the women confronts her own personal struggle as they prepare to spend nine days on the Colorado River.

Over the course of the 226-mile journey, the women gain confidence in their skills, from pitching tents to paddling through rapids to righting a capsized raft.

They hike through magnificent canyons, leap off cliffs into the icy river, coat each other with clay in mud pools and eagerly soak up the knowledge of their river guides.

Reading from their journals or quietly talking as the sun sets, the four writers reflect on the power of their journey.

“Writing Down the River” is the newest addition to KAET’s Arizona Collection, a continuing series of programs that explores the land, history and people of Arizona.

For more information, visit the Website: www.kaet.asu.edu.

KAET is part of Arizona State University.

County fair entry

deadline is Friday

FLAGSTAFF — Residents interested in entering their animals, flowers, vegetables, fine arts, crafts and other handiwork in the 51st annual Coconino County Fair have until Friday to officially enter, county citizen outreach coordinator Brenda Grey announced.

The fair will be Sept. 1-4 at the Coconino County Fairgrounds at Fort Tuthill.

Premium books that provide detailed entry information can be picked up at distribution spots all over the county, including the Grand Canyon Post Office.

A limited number of commercial and community service booths are still available. Applications can be obtained from the parks and rec office. For additional premium book locations or for more information, call David Fiss at 520-774-5139.


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