Foxwoods Friday Highlights the Mashentucket Pequots Pow-Wow "Schemitzun"

The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation Welcomes You to
SCHEMITZUN

Saturday & Sunday, August 24 & 25, 2013
on the Mashantucket Reservation

Sat: 10AM - 10PM & Sun: 10AM - 6 PM

The event, centered on drumming and ancient dances, gives guests a chance to learn about native customs, browse Native American arts and crafts and visit the 17th Century Eastern Woodland Village exhibit, with storytelling, demos of wampum making, net making and other practices.

The dancing, drumming and singing take center stage.
The dance contests are separated by age, and within the age groups they are separated by men and women. Men's dances include:

• Fancy Feather Dance (Northern and Southern styles), a dance featuring vivid regalia with dramatic movement, including spins and leaps. Often the biggest crowd-pleasing competition of a pow-wow 
• Men's Traditional, a dance featuring traditional regalia, authentic design and materials, single or no bustle, and movements based on traditional dances.

Women's dances include two very interesting dances:

• Fancy Shawl, a dance featuring women wearing brilliant colors, a long, usually fringed and decorated, shawl, performing rapid spins and elaborate dance steps.
• Jingle Dress (healing dance):The jingle dress includes a skirt with hundreds of small tin cones that make noise as the dancer moves with light footwork danced close to ground. Jingle dress can weigh up to 30lbs because of the tin cones

Drumming and music is very important to the Pow-Wow, and at the heart of the Native American culture. Be prepared to accept the difference in the music and culture. It is an event filled with tradition, respect, fun, and reverence.

And with that tradition, the guest should be aware of a certain etiquette that is expected by the tribes and especially the performers - this is not a rock concert, so don't act like it is. Powwow etiquette includes such rules as:

• Know when photography is or is not acceptable
• Know that there is protocol for the Grand Entry
• Clothing worn by participants is known as "regalia" and not to be called a "costume."
• Drums have special rules and should not be touched or played by those not a part of the drum group. People and their regalia should not be touched without permission.

If you have never been to a pow-wow, GO! You'll remember it forever.

That's all for now.

Binbin