Drumming & Dance workshop on Black Madonnas of Sicily and Montevergine --

Name: Drumming & Dance workshop on Black Madonnas of Sicily and Montevergine --
Start: 2025-09-07T17:00:00-04:00
Location: Center for Modern Dance Education (CMDE)

Schedule

Sun, 07 Sep, 2025 at 05:00 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

Center for Modern Dance Education (CMDE) | Hackensack, NJ

Celebrate the Feast of the Black Madonna, Sept 7th
with drumming & dance workshop in New Jersey
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS WORKSHOP IS AT 5:00PM est
Internationally renowned singer, percussionist, and teacher Alessandra Belloni
Author of Healing Journeys with the Black Madonna
invites you to celebrate the Black Madonnas of Sicily and MAMMA SCHIAVONA, Montevergine --
patron of gays and transgenders
with special workshops this September!
CELEBRATE THE FEAST OF THE BLACK MADONNA OF SICILY, OUR LADY OF FREEDOM, AND THE MADONNA OF MONTEVERGINE!
This workshop by Alessandra Belloni will provide a full immersion into the ancient drumming traditions and devotional chants in honor of the Black Madonna from the region of Campania.
Featuring the TAMMURRIATA -- A DANCE AND DRUMMING WORKSHOP FOR THE FEAST OF THE BLACK MADONNA
with dancers AMARA & Peter di Geronimo
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2025
5:00 pm to 8:00 pm EDT
Center for Modern Dance Education (CMDE)
84 Euclid Avenue, Hackensack NJ
(201) 342-2989

This powerful journey will introduce and transport the audience to a time and place where an unbroken and ancient tradition continues today with folk music, processions, devotional drumming, and dance. It will feature Alessandra Belloni's field research taken during her most recent pilgrimage in Campania in August 2024, with her students. It will provide a panoramic view of the sacred sites of the Black Madonna in this region, known in the Italian folk tradition as the "Seven Sisters."
Students will learn:
A unique style of traditional Southern Italian frame drum & tambourine playing, including variations of the 4/4 rhythm of the Tammurriata.
These rhythms and movements represent an unbroken chain of inspiration and expression of sound and dance, dating back to the rites of the Mother Earth Goddess Cybele, and kept alive into the present. We will learn the history of this powerful tambourine style, traditionally done by women.
Empowering women to get in touch with their ancient frame drumming traditions, achieve inner balance and relief of stress while restoring spiritual and physical energy is a major theme of this work.
THE DANCE OF THE TAMMURRIATA - This elegant and sensual dance from Naples is performed by couples playing castanets to the rhythm of the large drum, called the Tammorra. The dance movements have a strong Spanish and Middle Eastern flourish, with many recognizable movements of the Flamenco and Belly Dance traditions. These movements are set to the beat of African 4/4 rhythms. The Tammurriata is based upon an improvisational style of drumming and singing usually enacted during the summer rituals in honor of the ancient Earth Goddess Cybele, and later, the Black Madonna.
You will also learn:
• Sacred chants of the Divine Feminine, now known as Mamma Schiavona, and the sacred mountain of Montevergine. Chants & prayers for La Madonna del Tindari, Sicily and La Madonna della Libera.
• The ancient tradition of the femminielli - gay and transgender devotees of Mamma Schiavona
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION:
Email to: [email protected] or [email protected]

Participants need to have a tambourine or frame drum,
at least 12 inches wide.
Alessandra's own design is available for purchase,
made in collaboration with REMO
for the Southern Italian tambourine technique. http://www.alessandrabelloni.com/store
Alessandra may have drums for sale at the workshop.
**Please wear white clothing with red if possible**
$75 at the door and $65 in advance
You can pay by paypal: @blackmadonnacenter
[email protected]
OR DIRECTLY TO Alessandra --
Venmo Alessandra Belloni or
Zelle (646) 322-4637