Queens Farm To Host Autumn Dance Celebration

FLORAL PARK, QUEENS — The Queens County Farm Museum will honor and celebrate American Indian cultural traditions with a two-day outdoor program this fall.

The upcoming Autumn Dance Celebration, which will take place Nov. 7 and 8, will give thanks for the summer harvest through performances of more than 20 different dances by the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers, according to a news release.

Eight Indian Nations will be represented: Hopi, Winnebago, Lenape, Choctaw, Mayan, Seneca, Santo Domingo and Chickahominy.

The special-admission program was created to reimagine the farm's annual Thunderbird American Indian Powwow, which was canceled in July due to the pandemic.

Performances include:

• Smoke dance (Iroquois): During the winter months the people had to build fires in the longhouse to keep warm. On certain days there wasn't enough wind that came in the doorways to help keep the fires burning, so people would get together and dance near the fires to create enough wind to stoke the flames.
• Grass dance (Sioux): Before a group would move into a new camping area, they would first send out a group of dancers to crush down the tall grass that grows out on the Great Plains. Then, when the other members of the tribe arrived, they would have a smooth area to erect their teepees. They called this dance the grass dance.
• Buffalo dance (Hopi): This is a winter dance the people perform in an effort to have a successful hunt. The movements of the dance copy the movements of the buffalo.
• Hoop dance (Toas): This dance was created to test the skills of the dancers: how well they handle the hoops, how well they keep in time with the music and how many hoops the dancer uses.

Dancers will perform in full regalia, and each dance will be explained to the audience.

As part of the celebration, the Queens County Farm Museum will also host an outdoor food and craft market featuring Native American vendors.