All Over Albany

Crailofest

The Crailo State Historic Site in Rensselaer has the opening day of Crailofest -- "a celebration of African culture in the New World" -- lined up for this Saturday, April 2.

The site's new exhibit, A Dishonorable Trade: Human Trafficking in the Dutch Atlantic World, will be open. And there will be other events and activities:

At 2:00 pm the First Presbyterian Church, at 34 Broadway in Rensselaer will open its doors for a talk by Donald Hyman entitled Land of the Blacks, a dance performance and musical selections by the First Israel AME Choir and a Hip Hop artist who has performed in the Netherlands. Dutch inspired treats will be served at the church by culinary students from the Abrookin Career and Technical Center. Following the conclusion of the program at the church, Crailo will remain open until 4:30 pm for viewing the exhibit.

There are two other Crailofest days planned -- May 7 and June 4 -- with performances, readings, dance, art, and food. Admission is $6 for adults / $1 for kids under 12 (tickets for all three days are $15 / $3).

The Crailo site was once a home for the Van Rensselaer family and now serves as a museum of colonial Dutch history in the Hudson Valley. It was named after the Van Rensselaer's estate in the Netherlands -- Crayloo or Cralo -- which meant "crows' wood" in Dutch.