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Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2007 Interactive arts festival engages audience Magical Montgomery celebration gives visitors a chance to take part in the fun by Maya Calabrese | Special to The Gazette
Laurie DeWitt⁄The Gazette Two-year-old Juliet Franklin of the Chevy Chase neighborhood of Washington, D.C., stands between two ballerinas, Lai-Lin Robinson and Olivia Fore, both of the District, during Saturday’s Magical Montgomery. 
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Audience members eagerly clapped as Ziva’s Spanish Dance Ensemble engaged them in an interactive performance during Saturday’s Magical Montgomery festival in downtown Silver Spring.
‘‘I always say we only dance as good and strong as the audience responds,” said Ziva Cohen, the founder and artistic director of the Potomac-based Ziva’s Institute of Spanish Dance.
As the group performed improvisational dances, Cohen encouraged the audience of all ages to help keep the beat. ‘‘People that come here appreciate the art and give the energy back,” she said.
The dance performance illustrated the interactive nature of Magical Montgomery, an annual event sponsored by the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County. About 12,000 people crowded the streets, dancing to the music and exploring the activities set up along Ellsworth Drive.
While some festival-goers watched the performances, others visited the 100 booths set up along Ellsworth Drive that held activities for adults and children.
Coral Cantigas’ ‘‘instrument petting zoo,” where participants could play with instruments from around the world, was a favorite of Takoma Park resident Jenny Wagner, who attended the festival with her children Ceiliah, 6, and Jack, 3. ‘‘I like dance and the arts and try to expose the kids to as much as possible,” Wagner said. ‘‘The whole event makes you feel like you’re in other parts of the world.”
Other booths featured local artists for whom Magical Montgomery is a great opportunity to display and sell their works. ‘‘I really like to sell to local people. I make everything by hand and this is a nice way to sell work and display it,” said Pat Crane of Silver Spring, who has sold her jewelry at the event for four years.
Crane also enjoys seeing other artists’ work. ‘‘There is a lot of local talent in Montgomery County and it’s nice they do this every year,” she said.
Artists were presented with awards based on quality of work and booth presentations. Anne Sanderoff-Walker won Best in Show for Designer Fabrications, followed by Brendan Kager who took second for Kager Glass and Nic Gallora who placed third for his wooden sculptures. Best Organization Booth went to the Iran Cultural and Education Center.
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