Annenberg Center Welcomes African Children's Choir Tonight

The African Children's Choir uses music and dance to give survivors of the devastation of war, famine, and disease a new lease on life and new hope. Tonight, March 27 at 7:30 p.m. these inspirational youngsters take center stage at Annenberg Center's Zellerbach Theatre for an uplifting evening of children's songs, traditional spirituals and contemporary tunes. Tickets cost $20-$60 and are available online at www.annenbergcenter.org or by phone at 215.898.3900. The Annenberg Center is located at 3680 Walnut Street.

The African Children's Choir features boys and girls ages 7 to 10, many of whom have lost one or both parents through the devastation of war, famine and disease. They represent all of the children of Africa and together they demonstrate the potential of African children to become strong leaders for a better future in their land. In each performance, the children melt the hearts of audiences with their charming smiles and delightful African tunes, accompanied by ethnic instrumentation.

Over the past twenty years, the children have appeared in thousands of concerts around the world, including performances at the Pentagon, the United Nations, and at the Royal Albert Hall in London as part of the BBC Proms series. More recently they performed at the Commonwealth Observance Day in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at Westminster Abbey. Already on this tour they have met the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, at her residence in Dublin, and with the First Minister, Peter Robinson, and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness at Stormont Castle, Belfast.

The primary goal of the Choir is to raise awareness of the need of destitute and orphaned children in Africa and to raise funds for continued development and support of the African Children's Choir Programs. The Choir's international educational endeavor provides unique training for the children. Once choir members have completed a concert tour, they return to their homelands with the tools necessary for bettering their future.

Annenberg Center Live is also hosting a special African Children's Choir performance for school children at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, March 27. For more information and to order tickets for this performance, contact Edward Epstein at 215-746-7997 or by email edwardme@ac.upenn.edu.