2010-September-Gusman Theater, Miami-Bhakti Fest-Vancouver

the gusman theater in downtown miami was built in 1926, a bizzare taj mahalian testament to the american entertainment god.

thanks to many donations from rich and famous folks, the theater has been restored to its original over-the-top grandeur - originally a movie theatre (what else), it now presents musical events, such as ours.

it is an incredible theatre, worth a blog of its own, but due to the way we’re moving these days (the white clouds are blowing at hurricane speed), a few pix will have to do.

mr.gusman looks on as times change and mantras appear at his shrine.

moving clouds waft across the ceiling, stars twinkle in the blue sky above, the moon rises before the concert begins

peacocks perch on balconies

while down below, guitar wallah and super-sound-tech struggle with sound demons during sound check

no demons here

peacocks-eye view of the stage

kirtan wallahs gather proudly in the upstairs foyer for photo op while friends begin to gather below

view from the sound desk – the romanesque statues – and cuddly toys – are alive

it’s a kind of tradition to write your name on the door after appearing here.
we’re in infamous company.

our friends atmo and amlas from the wildquest dolphin safaris played hooky from their bimini paradise to join us for the concert

hal, our promoter on stage before the concert

in a flash we left the humid, sticky heat of florida for the high desert air of joshua tree and the bhakti fest.

here are a few snapshots of the festival.

located somewhere along that long and lonely desert road lies our home for the duration of our stay in joshua tree

half cactus, half tree, a genuine joshua tree – only found this particular part of the world.

with kirtan wallah and tabla maestro, geoffrey gordon

deva and new friend radhanath swami.

a great honour to be in the presence of this humble monk – he feeds a quarter of a million slum children every day from his ashram in bombay.

leaving the usa in 1969 he travelled first to europe then by land, to india, which is where he met his destiny.

look for his book – the journey home – it’s an amazing story of one mans quest for peace.

he is on tour in america right now...check out his schedule on www.radhanathswami.com

a cluster with shyam das, maharaj, and manose

swamiji was presented with a garland of roses, which he graciously passed on to deva

coconuts – the best food for de-hydration

yoga all day classes

bhakti yogi

and now for the music...

..while the yoga continues.

people were kicking back – it was a gathering of the tribes

tasty!

...while the kirtan wallahs played on...

...and on...

...and on...

musicians area back stage

after our concert, we left the desert - through time zones and climate changes - to vancouver.

a view from our hotel window

where we reunited with terry mcbride, manager of the great sarah mclachlan – and the man behind our usa coast-to-coast road tour with krishna das.

we now plot a tour with the gyuto monks of tibet!

...plus, a long over-due and hilarious meeting back stage with author-mystic, andrew harvey.

the white clouds have now blown in to toronto, another time zone, different climate,
but the same reality.

tonight we’ll meet our friends here, and then on to our next concert,
which will be in moscow.

where the news is that the 1100 seater theatre was sold out two weeks ago.

so...on we go!

hari om!

osho