The Los Angeles Philharmonic's Ford Digital Festivals Presents TOVAANGAR TODAY

The Los Angeles Philharmonic's Ford Digital Festivals are curator-led virtual programs offering an in-depth exploration of a single theme through multi-disciplinary performances, workshops and conversations combined into a multi-hour video production.

Before Los Angeles' name was first written on a map, there was Tovaangar: a gathering place and nurturing home to the Tongva people. Co-curated by Kenny Ramos, Jessa Calderon and Kelly Caballero, Tovaangar Today is a virtual celebration of the Native artists and cultural creators who still thrive in the region, working as poets, actors, emcees, multimedia artists and advocates. While centering on the Tongva and other California Nations, the festival will also feature artists from the local intertribal urban Native diaspora and highlight the connections between art, activism, identity and tribal sovereignty.

PROGRAMMING INFORMATION:

• Tongva singer-songwriter, performer, poet and jeweler Kelly Caballero performs original songs with her ukulele from The Ford's Edison Plaza.
• Singer, songwriter, emcee, poet and author Jessa Calderon fills The Ford's stage with her catchy and poignant hooks, rhymes and lyrics.
• Explore the powerful voice of artist and poet Solange Aguilar in a video artist feature.
• Isaiah Mendoza and Annie Mendoza share a portion of their documentary The Aqueduct Between Us, which offers radical oral histories about water in Los Angeles as told by the people of Tovaangar and Payahuunadü (Owens Valley).
• A panel conversation moderated by Kenny Ramos about environmental justice and protecting fragile water resources for tribal communities, featuring Founder and Executive Director of Sacred Places Institute Angela Mooney D'Arcy, activist for coastal protection Maura Sullivan, multimedia artist Isaiah Mendoza, and Director of Indigenous Waters Program for the Sacred Places Institute Annie Mendoza.
• A feature on Pukúu Cultural Community Services, who works to invest in, improve opportunities for and celebrate diverse tribal nations striving for the betterment of all American Indians living in Los Angeles County.
• Southern California-based Indigenous Artist and Producer The Tewa performs his distinct blend of jazz, soul and indie music at The Ford's Edison Plaza.
• A performance by Indigenous Alternative R&B artist PJ Vegas, known for his sultry vocals and gritty content, who won a 2017 MTV VMA for "Best Video with a Message." He is joined for his set by Native dancer Ba'ac Garcia.
• Performance poet turned director and television writer Tazbah Rose Chavez reads her multimedia poem "When did you forget?"
• Poet, podcaster, author and TV writer Tommy "Teebs" Pico reads selections from his book Nature Poem.
• Šmuwič Singers featuring Mia Lopez, Tina Calderon, and Jessa Calderon, the Šmuwič Singers (Chumash Singers) share stories through song.
• Vendors for the Virtual Marketplace will include merchandise, fashion, jewelry and a tattoo store from Our Indigenous Traditions and Unitary Apparel among others. 

For more information visit https://www.theford.com/concerts-and-events/ford-digital-festivals