Asian American Heritage Month

In honor of Asian Heritage Month, Pan-Asian artists gather across three Cook County Forest Preserves to bring cultural memories of nature to life. Through live interviews collected by Mandala team,  musicians, dancers, and narrators transform these stories into a vibrant, immersive performance experience. Set within the natural beauty of the forest preserves, audiences will journey through Asian dance, music, and storytelling that reflect deep cultural connections to land, memory, and community. This unique event invites participants to experience the forest through the sounds, movements, and voices of diverse Asian traditions. Artists Include: Chethan Anant, Tzu-Tsen Wu, Bob Garrett, Tatsu Aoki, Saraswathi Nanganathan, Pak Ngurah Ensemble, and more! May 16th, 2026, 11am-12pm Little Red House Program Center 9800 Willow Springs Rd, Willow Springs, IL 60480 May 16th, 2026 2pm-3pm Caldwell Nature Center Forest 6350 W Devon Ave, Chicago, IL 60646 May 17th, 2026 1:30 pm Asian American Heritage Month Performance 3120 Milwaukee Ave, Northbrook, IL 60062   Artist Lineup & Bios: Chethan Anant: Chicago-based Indian classical musician, multi-instrumentalist, and educator blending Hindustani classical music with jazz, Carnatic, blues, and electronic collaborations. Founder of The Bansurist LLC. Tzu Tsen Wu: Taiwanese musician specializing in zhongruan and liuqin, also playing ukulele, guitar, piano, banjo, and jakhee. Performs internationally and teaches while pursuing a master’s in World Music at Northern Illinois University. Bob Garrett: Chicago-based musician and composer with extensive experience in theater, dance, and international music collaborations. Performed in Hamilton (Chicago), Sting’s The Last Ship, and The Lion King national tour. Co-founder of Posterchild Art. Saraswathi Ranganathan: Chicago-based Carnatic veena artist and cross-cultural collaborator. Chicago Music Award winner who has performed with Disney’s Jungle Book and received Logan Foundation support. Over three decades of performing and teaching. Tatsu Aoki: Chicago-based composer, filmmaker, educator, and performer. Founder of the Chicago Asian American Jazz Festival and Executive Director of Asian Improv aRts Midwest, advancing cross-cultural collaboration and Japanese traditional arts. Habib: Sarod musician. More information coming soon! Pak Ngurah Ensemble: Gusti Ngurah Kertayda, Lead, is a graduate of the National Performing Arts Institute (KOKAR) in Denpasar, Indonesia. He is now the director of Indonesian Dance of Illinois, a non-profit organization in the greater Chicago area promoting Indonesian culture through dance and music.   This is a free event. Please Register Here!