New event to highlight historic alley in Chinatown
Bay City News
April 5, 2009
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Art in the alley: The event will help highlight the history of the “oldest, largest and most significant Chinatown in the U.S.,” according to Board of Supervisors President David Chiu. (Mike Koozmin/Special to The Examiner)
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When you think of art and culture in San Francisco, “alleyway” may not be the first word that pops into your head.
A tiny street in the heart of Chinatown will, however, be the backdrop for the inaugural Arts in the Alley, a planned series of events to highlight culture and history.
“The Bay Area doesn’t know its history,” said the Rev. Norman Fong, Chinatown Community Development Center deputy director. “Some of the first Chinese temples in the U.S. started in this alleyway. My gosh, people don’t know that.”
The first Arts in the Alley event will take place April 18, with live performances such as ribbon dancing and mask changing in Waverly Place, a two-block alley that used to be known for its 15 cent haircuts, an event organizer said.
The alleyway is between Clay and Washington streets, amid colorful buildings built as early as 1920.
Board of Supervisor President Daved Chiu said the alley event is important because it mimics more than 4,000 years of Chinese arts and “celebrates the history of the oldest, largest, most significant Chinatown in the U.S.”
Arts in the Alley events is planned to be held twice a year, and the next event is expected to take place sometime in late August.
