Albus Cavus is participating at the Urban Arts Festival organized by the State Theater in New Brunswick, NJ. This day-long outdoor celebration of music, dance, theater, visual art, and other arts that have emerged from urban street culture will be on Saturday, May 23 from 12pm-9pm. The festival includes live performances by local artists, community, and student groups; hands-on workshops; food; games; and much, more. The event will feature an outdoor stage on Livingston Avenue between George Street and New Street.

Emceeing the Urban Arts Festival is la C.Guapa from Rutgers WRSU’s radio show, Ultrason Latino, with special guest DJ Tony ‘El Uniko.’ The headline artists at the festival—who will begin at 6pm—include the North Carolina performance poet and State Theatre artist-in-residence for the month of May, Glenis Redmond. Redmond is a two-time Southeast Regional Individual Poetry Slam Champion. Also headlining the festival are the award-winning performance poetry trio, Rutgers alumni, and New Jersey natives, Mayhem Poets—Kyle Sutton, Scott Tarazevits, and Mason Granger, who blend raw elements of hip hop, theatre, improv, and stand-up comedy to deliver gut-wrenching, unforgettable performances. Closing the festival will be the New Brunswick Latino rock band Revolucion Urbana.

Rounding out the lineup onstage from 12pm-6pm are a variety of local and regional performers in hip hop, poetry, break dance, capoeira, Mexican rock music, African drumming, and more. Performers include the New Brunswick High School Drumline; American Repertory Ballet’s DANCE POWER scholars (a unique collaborative educational project for underprivileged students sponsored by American Repertory Ballet and the New Brunswick Board of Education) and an American Repertory Ballet Hip Hop dance group; local New Brunswick dance group, Strictly Street; spoken-word poets Pandora Scooter and Poetic Assassin; New Brunswick drum group, Black Circle Symphony; spoken word poet/musician El Trobador Oaxaqueno; musical group, Marsseil y Su grup Polvora; and the dance/martial arts group, Rutgers Capoeira. Rutgers Capoeira perform a contemporary style of capoeira, inclusive of both “Angola” and “Regional” styles, immersed in Brazilian culture through traditional songs as well as dances such as Samba de Roda and Maculele. A complete list of Urban Arts Festival artists will be available soon at: http://www.statetheatrenj.org/urban.
The festival also includes a number of hands-on workshops and art projects, open mics, food, games, and other activities. The public is invited to participate in creating a 50-foot long mural alongside professional graffiti artists from the artist collective Albus Cavus. The other art event is “Nexus,” a collaborative installation using recycled materials that is designed to build community through shared art making.

The Urban Arts Festival’s performances, workshops, and art making activities are FREE to the public. No tickets or reservations are required. Individuals interested in taking any of the free classes (in performance poetry, hip hop dance, or capoeira) are encouraged to register in advance at www.StateTheatreNJ/urban, by calling 732-246-7469, ext. 545, or emailing Education@StateTheatreNJ.org.