Happy St David's Day - Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus to all our members and readers. We would also like to thank everyone who has contributed to the growth of this site over the last 10 months and that means all of you. We will be adding some exciting new features in the near future which will assist us in making the site more entertaining and moreinformative and also in putting Wales and contemporary Welsh culture firmly on the map in the USA and elsewhere worldwide.

Meanwhile David Western wants our help. Go to this url to read the original appeal and see the latest pics of the Portland Eisteddfod Lovespoon:- http://americymru.ning.com/profiles/blogs/from-david-westerns-lovespoon#

"I have been calling him "Dafydd the Dragon" as I've been working on the spoon, but I but have now decided that because Dafydd is my name, he should be called something else.

So I've decided to throw a little competition to name him and it's open to anyone who wishes to offer a good alternative. Sorry, that there are no grand prizes for this, only the glory of having the name you suggest become the dragon's name for the duration of the carving and hopefully beyond when the lucky winner takes him home! In two weeks I'll get Gaabi and Ceri to pick the winner and we'll have an official naming! That will also be my incentive to get him done! Now you may be wondering why I say it is a he when it could conceivably be a she...and there is no valid reason that I could defend in a court of law for that...I've just had the feeling he is, a he!! So there you go, if you can think of a good name for him and are inclined to send it to us; give it a shot!"

Soooooo....if you have any ideas for a new name for "Dafydd the Dragon" either post them here or on the original blogpost and we'll announce the winner in a few weeks time.

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New bilingual performance Iechyd Daby Heddus Wyn Blackwell

8,000 raised after Seren Nadolig Rhos - cast hope to raise more, Oh yes they Do!

DATE: July 13th and 14th 2012

LOCATION: Theatr Stiwt, Rhosllanerchrugog, Wrexham

Rhos Theatre Company are going from strength to strength since being established after the resounding success of the S4C television programme Seren Nadolig Rhosin 2011. Members of the colourful community pantomime that was broadcasted over Christmas 2011 on S4C decided to continue performing, therefore Rhos Theatre Company was founded.

The company is pleased to announce their first performance since the television appearance, Iechyd Daby Heddus Wyn Blackwell, will be staged Friday and Saturday evening 13th and 14th of July at Theatr Stiwt, Rhosllanerchrugog.

Iechyd Da is a bilingual Comedy drama written by Heddus Wyn Blackwell. She is also one of the Directors along with Mel Drake and Dylan Glyn Williams.

Heddus said, This is a drama about Aled (Arwel Tanant Jarvis), a high school teacher and bachelor who believes hes met the perfect woman when Elen (Julie Jones) accepts a teaching job at his school. In order to catch her eye, he tries to live a healthier lifestyle with encouragement from his daughter Ceri (Iola Wright), and Bethan, his new friend (Llinos Ann Roberts). Will he successfully give up smoking? Will he enjoy the Zumba classes? Will he win Elens heart? Will his friend, James (Shaun Edwards) and Mali the dog cooperate with his plans? Come and see the performance for the answers!.

Stifyn Parry said, The initial idea of inviting S4C to film Seren Nadolig Rhos in the Stiwt was to resurrect the theatre company where I started my career. It has been encouraging to see the communitys perseverance in ensuring the future of the Drama Company. Every penny raised from ticket sales will go back to maintain the Stiwt as a center for the whole community. Our Christmas pantomime raised over eight thousand pounds which has been invested in resources for the Stiwt, and it is obvious that the good work will continue. Im looking forward to see the performance and to return to join in the fun!

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I have finally reached the crowning section of the Left Coast Eisteddfod lovespoon and will now enjoy some time bringing the guardian dragon to life. I have 'ummed and ahhed' about how I am going to tackle this little chap and have decided to carve him 'in the round' (fully 3 dimensional). The walnut I am using is of a sufficient thickness to handle it, so I think that it is the way to go.

I have been calling him "Dafydd the Dragon" as I've been working on the spoon, but I but have now decided that because Dafydd is my name, he should be called something else.

So I've decided to throw a little competition to name him and it's open to anyone who wishes to offer a good alternative. Sorry, that there are no grand prizes for this, only the glory of having the name you suggest become the dragon's name for the duration of the carving and hopefully beyond when the lucky winner takes him home! In two weeks I'll get Gaabi and Ceri to pick the winner and we'll have an official naming! That will also be my incentive to get him done! Now you may be wondering why I say it is a he when it could conceivably be a she...and there is no valid reason that I could defend in a court of law for that...I've just had the feeling he is, a he!! So there you go, if you can think of a good name for him and are inclined to send it to us; give it a shot!

I'm going to break up the carving into 3 sections for the blog. I'll round out his body and shape the back scales first, then I will move on to the head and finally, I'll shape out the wings. This week is the body.

I've decided that I want to really exaggerate the scales along his back when I carve him, so I've excavated fairly deeply in those sections. I'm hoping that will help cast a nice shadow when he hangs on the wall and will generate a feeling of movement.

Once the scales have taken shape, I will start rounding the body, legs and tail sections. My plan is to leave him 'from the knife' (that is with the cut marks clearly visible in the form of facetting) rather than to smooth him down too much. I think that leaving him facetted will make for a more vibrant and lively carving, especially when viewed from a few feet away. It will also echo the idea of a scaley skin rather than looking too smooth and featureless.

Here's how he looks so far. I have roughed out the flow of his tail and put a nice tip on it, shaped the scales and rounded the front half of the body, started shaping the leg and have ramped the chest down so that the knotwork which will become his tongue can pass over.

Next week I'll shape the neck and head and will clean up the tongue knot. I also have an idea for the eye which will either be a complete success or a total calamitous disaster...stay tuned!

In the meantime, the Left Coast Eisteddfod welcomes any and all donations! . Please consider gifting this exciting cultural event! Every dollar you donate entitles you to a ticket in the draw for this very lovespoon!

Welsh Music Series for Wales Week, March 1-8

From the page:- "As part of Wales Week, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts is presenting a week-long series, Music of Wales: Screenings from Welsh Television that includes programs of opera, jazz, popular music, and rock. Opening March 1 with a 2006 recital by the bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, the series also features a documentary about Welsh harpist Catrin Finch, The Merry Widow performed by the Welsh Opera, a concert by popular stylist Shirley Bassey, a documentary on the international hit singer Petula Clark, a jazz concert by Liane Carroll, and a rock concert by John Cale, among others. All of these videos will be having their American premieres. The programs have been donated by BBC Wales and by S4C (the rock concert) to the Library's archival collections." ... .MORE .

Wales Week: Owen Sheers and Paul Watkins in Discussion Thursday, March 5, 6:30

From the page:- "In celebration of Wales Week, renowned Welsh authors Owen Sheers and Paul Watkins will be in discussion together at the Humanities and Social Sciences Library on March 5. On Saturday, March 7 poets Samuel Menashe and Jon Curley visit the Jefferson Market Branch to share their work and discuss their craft. The Library presents more than 20,000 free public programs throughout its 87 branches in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island annually, complementing its broad collections and other services. ... .MORE .

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Click above to enlarge

Many of you will have already noticed that we have reorganised the AmeriCymru homepage today. Why? Read on

We have decided that the front page should contain 3 'hot spots'. We believe that this will facilitate easier navigation AND show at a glance how members posts/photos etc are doing on the site.

1. Current This is of course the Activity Feed and we encourage members to use it for any purpose which does not directly contradict site rules . For more on this please see the following post:- Status Updates or - 'I Cut My Toenails Today'

2. Popular In this section we will rotate ( randomly ) the Top Content, Top Member , Top Discussion , Top Photo , Top Video and Top Blogpost displays. Check back frequently if you want to see all the rankings. This will allow us to display the most popular content items prominently on the front page and indeed, on every page, on the site. A content item becomes 'popular' for four reasons:- number of hits, number of comments and number of 'Likes' and 'Shares'. Since this display is in the right hand column content will be widely seen on the net since every page we promote will contain prominent links to it.

3. Featured In this section we will highlight content which we believe to be particularly important, interesting or amusing. Although this section has to be updated manually we will be happy to receive suggestions or recommendations for inclusion. Anything in the 'Featured' or 'Popular' displays is likely to be featured heavily on other social networks,Twitter, FB, G+ and all the usual suspects.

We believe this is an improvement on the previous rather haphazard arrangements. Over to you dear reader....any thoughts?

( Reproduced from an email circular. For full details on CeltFest , including ticket sales, please visit WWW.CELTFEST.COM . Watch the CeltFest Video below and here . )

Cardiff International Arena - in the very heart of Wales's capital - will play host to CELTFEST '09 , a day-long festival on March 21st 2009, the day of the Wales and Ireland match - final game of the RBS Six Nations Championship - featuring the very best entertainment from both nations plus:

Largest pre- & post-match party in Wales!

Giant Screen showing Wales v Ireland game from the Millennium Stadium - the CeltFest screen is the largest screen ever used in Wales!

Largest Bar Facilities in Cardiff: world-class Welsh ales from champion brewers Felinfoel.

All Day Speciality Foods.

Celebrity hosts and comperes from the world of sport and television, including Rugby legends - past & present!

CeltFest is a Six Nations Celebration, a celebration of the very best entertainment from Wales & Ireland, an all day festival providing an amazing atmosphere and surroundings to enjoy the full experience which only Wales v Ireland in Cardiff can provide!

This is the first time such an impressive and varied line up has been presented on the same bill, it includes world star and special guest - BRYN TERFEL, Welsh Queen of Pop - CERYS MATTHEWS, Ireland's number one folk group - THE WOLFE TONES, Welsh patriotic icon - DAFYDD IWAN, plus much, much more.

CELTFEST IS THE ULTIMATE MATCH DAY ENTERTAINMENT EXPERIENCE!.

One ticket, costing only 25, will provide admission to the venue for the full day - midday to midnight. Upon entrance to CeltFest, ticket holders will receive a special CeltFest wristband, allowing you to leave and return to the venue at any time throughout the event.

Whether you have a ticket for the game or not, CeltFest is the best place to be to savour the greatest party in Six Nations history. CeltFest will be a sell out event, early booking is recommended.

For full details on CeltFest, including ticket sales, please visit WWW.CELTFEST.COM

Watch the CeltFest Video below and here .

INTERNATIONAL EISTEDDFOD GIVE LOCAL ARTISTS A VOICE IN LLANFEST

Sunday 8 July 2012

12.00pm-19.00pm

A fantastic line up of local music and dance from local groups will be the highlight of the final afternoon on the Llangollen International Eisteddfod field. For the first time ever the International Festival will showcase the best of what North East Wales has to offer in a festival within a festival. Amongst others, there will be a chance to see:

• Ysgol Dinas Bran Community Wind Band - is a community project and currently has 60 members aged 10 -21+ mostly from Ysgol Dinas Bran. The Band has won several awards and and have a very diverse repertoire from Holst to Lady Gaga.
• Subtheme- are an energetic 5 piece live outfit playing a blend of funk, house and disco.
• Out By Sunday a winning act of Wrexhams Busking Competition 2011, Out By Sunday have a weekly residency at The Queen Hotel in Chester and are commonly known for regularly busking within Chester City.
• Harriet Earis is one of the best Celtic harpists Wales can offer. She has already given harp recitals around the world with tours across America, Germany, Canada, Holland, France, Belgium and Ireland.
• Future Perfect - are an exciting North Wales based electronica duo, bringing together techno dance beats & bass-lines to create a sound thats uniquely theirs.
• Bethan Morgan - a Llangollen girl, has developed a growing audience since moving to her new home in Birmingham, her voice being compared to P.J. Harvey.
• The New Foos - a 5 piece covers band, based in North Wales playing songs from the likes of Queen, Lady GaGa, 10.CC and Stereohonics.
• Urban Fusion - is a brand of Street, Hip-hop and Break Dance group for all ages and have performed with celebrities, appeared in music videos and danced throughout the world with Celebs such as, XFactor's Olly Murs, Peter Andre, Akon, DJ's Dave Pierce and Tim Westwood.
• Llangollen Operatic Societys Travelling Troupe - Formed in July 2010, Llangollen Operatic Societys Travelling Troupe is a group of around 15 experienced, amateur performers who, along with their Musical Director, Elen Mair Roberts, aim to bring a slice of the theatrical to your event!

LlanFEST organiser Barrie Roberts said, Representatives from across the world descend on Llangollen for one week every year showcasing the best talent they have to offer. We felt that establishing LlanFEST was the best way to give the rest of the world a taste of our local talent. With only a 5 admission fee, two Bars and Food Outlets, visitors to the International Eisteddfod on the Sunday will be able to enjoy a variety of bands, performers and dancers in a fitting finale to the field events.

Weve added a few new features over on the Americymru Blog,...some tunes and a twitter feed in the right hand column. You can join the site by registering with your Google or Yahoo password and there is a comment wall and a few other "social" features enabled. We'll be adding more as Google Friends Connect adds to its repertoire:-

http://americymru.blogspot.com

Meanwhile our new chat feature and the new updated and revamped photo, video and music players are all scheduled for release on Thursday night ( probably about 7 p.m. Pacific Time ). If all goes according to plan you'll find chat in a bar at the bottom of the page ( a la Facebook ) and you will be able to access it from every page on the site. Also ( assuming that it works ok ) we'll put the new music player at the bottom of the page as well so you'll be able to access our music library while chatting or IM'ing.

More new features coming soon. Stay tuned!