Performing Arts

BMCM+AC: 9th Annual {Re}HAPPENING

Daniel Homero and Alpuche Gonzalez, artists

By Belle Crawford

On Saturday, March 30, the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center (BMCM+AC) hosts the 9th annual {Re}HAPPENING, an event inspired by John Cage’s 1952 Theatre Piece No. 1, at the Historic Black Mountain College campus at Lake Eden. With this year’s event, BMCM+AC will become one of many organizations around the globe to join in the centennial celebration of influential dancer, choreographer and BMC faculty member Merce Cunningham.

“When we think of contemporary art, some key elements that come to mind are experimentation, playfulness and interdisciplinary collaborations,” says BMCM+AC community engagement manager, Kate Averett. “BMC artists like John Cage, Robert Rauschenberg and Merce Cunningham—and the collaborations that they produced—set this tone and changed the art world forever.”

{Re}HAPPENING is a one-day event that is part fundraiser, part community instigator, providing a platform for artists to respond to the vital legacy of BMC by activating the buildings and grounds of the campus with installations, new media, music and performance projects. The event provides an immersive, educational experience for attendees and an opportunity for collaboration between local businesses and arts organizations.

“Performers from around the globe will gather at BMC to celebrate the influence of the college on their own paths,” says Averett. “It has become a pilgrimage and culminating moment for many.”

This year’s event also celebrates the influence of non-Western music on legendary BMC artists. “We are proud to be featuring Arooj Aftab, Anjna Swaminathan & Rafiq Bhatia,” Averett says. “These musicians meld non- Western traditions with the experimental into a distinctly contemporary global sound.”

The BMC Lake Eden Campus is located at 375 Lake Eden Road in Black Mountain. For more information, visit ReHappening.com.

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