September 19, 2026 Yalla Drum played for Al-Wahda Performance Fest, a festival of cultural dance, music, and performances from regions across the globe!

September 17, 2026 Community members and students from global studies courses joined for a Yalla Drum concert to celebrate SWANA heritage and culture.

September 17, 2026 Yalla Drum played for the closing ceremony of the “Why We Record: Palestine Exhibit.” Students from all over campus joined to hear the drummers play in solidarity with Palestine.

September 12, 2026 Participants joined for a workshop on turning old household items into colorful works of art! We enjoyed a space where community members of all experience levels could join to play with color and explore our where our artistic instincts took us.

For the second year in a row, Yalla Drum was honored to play for the touring Ramallah-based dance troupe, Al-Fannoun. The troupe was hosted by a collaboration of organizations, including Mizna, Ananya Dance Theater, the Grief and Rage Circle for Palestine, Pillsbury House Theater, and Red Eye Theater, and New Arab American Theater Works was a proud co-sponsor of the event.

August 27, 2026 Our community gathered for our sixth annual Yalla Drum concert, to culminate this summer’s drumming season. Our drummers played widely recognized Arabic rhythms and music, and community members had a blast singing and dancing along to their favorite traditional tunes

August 20, 2026 Yalla Drum members played at a local fundraiser for the victims of the US-Israeli invasion of Iran. We played to stand in solidarity with those afflicted by US imperialism.

June 20th, 2026 Community members joined for our third annual grape leaves cooking circle, this time, taught by TWO different chefs representing two delicious cuisines--Iraqi and Palestinian. We had a beautiful time sharing our grape leaves traditions, stories, and the joy around our cherished dish.

June 11th, 2026 In a workshop facilitated by Michelle Baroody and Andrea Shaker, community members gathered for a workshop on re-connecting with our families’ migration stories through the art of storyboarding. Participants each brought objects which remind us of home, and explored what it means to reconstruct lost histories based on fragments.

June 6-7, 2026 To culminate our 2025=2026 Midwestern SWANA Playwright Incubator, we presented readings of six new plays by our distinguished cohort of Midwestern SWANA playwrights. Each reading was followed by a talkback moderated by an esteemed educator, academic, artist, or activist in our community. Hundreds showed up to witness a first-of-its-kind gathering of Midwestern SWANA theater.

May 30th, 2026 Yalla Drum reverberated through the streets of Brooklyn Park at the annual Tater Daze parade! We played at the Tater Daze outdoor festival and for Brooklyn Park residents witnessing the exciting parade attractions.

May 7th, 2026 Yalla Drum performed at the joint gala for Students for Justice in Palestine and Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social at the University of Minnesota! We played for shared liberation and celebration of our Palestinian and Latino communities.

May 1st, 2026 Our Inaugural Decolonized Performance Cohort and Yalla Drum Spring Ensemble showcased their season of learning in a public performance and panel discussion. Community members gathered to celebrate these two incredible programs and honor their continued learning.

To culminate our Arab American Heritage Month storytime tour, we hosted award-winning children's book author and seed artist for a community artist talk. Cathy presented on her artistic work and participated in a Q&A with the audience.

April 16th, 2026 We brought award-winning Arab American children's book author, Cathy Camper, to lead a story time session at Dayton's Bluff Elementary School in celebration of Arab American Heritage Month.

April 15th, 2026 We brought award-winning Arab American children's book author, Cathy Camper, to lead a story time session at the Children's Museum in celebration of Arab American Heritage Month.

April 15th, 2026 We brought award-winning Arab American children's book author, Cathy Camper, to lead a story time session at Breck School in celebration of Arab American Heritage Month.

December 6th, 2025 Our Yalla Drum instructors performed at Mizna's Syria on Screen fundraiser, marking a year since the fall of Bashar Al-Assad's regime. We played in solidarity with the Syrian people and in support of liberation.

December 6th, 2025 Our final workshop of the year was a powerful multi-media meditation on our love for the beautiful land of Cedar Trees, our beloved Libnaan. Our participants engaged in a three-part workshop facilitated by the amazing Sharon Mansur, Lebanese American multi-disciplinary artist and dancer. We engaged with movement, writing, and visual arts activities to explore our connection to Lebanon.

November 26th, 2025 Yalla Drum members played at a powerful interfaith gathering for the Iraqi-American Reconciliation Project. Our members played traditional Arabic pieces in solidarity with Iraq and in support of liberation.

October 24th, 2025 Yalla Drum accompanied and performed with the Fannoun Dance Troupe from Ramallah, Palestine! The event was organized by Body Watani and Mizna and supported by Ananya Dance Theater, Women Against Military Madness (WAMM), and New Arab American Theater Works Yalla Drum was proud to uplift Palestinian artists, and to support unconditional Palestinian resistance and joy through music and dance ✊🏼

October 18th, 2025 Our community learned the craft of Arabic calligraphy with the talented Palestinian American visual artist, Raghda Skeik! Arabic calligraphy is a delicate yet beautiful cultural craft. Our participants rose to the challenge of learning all the basic strokes, and got to work on their own piece to take home!

October 4th, 2025 Yalla Drum had the honor of being invited to play at the Guthrie Theater before the October 4th Matinee of "The Ruins," written by George Abud and directed by Osh Ashruf. Yalla Drum had the fifth floor lobby jamming and clapping to a set of classical Arabic rhythms and songs!

October 19th, 2025 Our very own Kathryn Haddad spoke at the Grantmakers in Conference, which was held in Minneapolis from Oct 19-22. The panel was titled, "Beyond Foreign: Immigrant and Refugee Impacts on the Arts," the panel explored the impact of BIPOC immigrants on the arts ecosystem, in Minnesota and beyond.

August 21st, 2025 To conclude the Summer 2025 drumming season, Yalla Drum played an exciting outdoor performance at The Cedar Cultural Center. The event featured a special performance by The Cedar Youth Program students, who spent the summer learning under the instruction of Yalla Drum directors Robert Lehmann and Tarek Aboueid. Yalla Drum and The Cedar Youth played an exciting set of classical Arabic songs by Fairuz, as well as the most widely recognized rhythms of the Arab world!

August 15-17, 2025 The MENA Theater Maker's Alliance (MENATMA) Board had a retreat in Portland, Oregon. The board convened for a weekend to organize around issues of importance for our MENA Theater Community.

June to August 2025 Yalla Drum instructors taught Summer drumming lessons to youth at The Cedar Cultural Center's youth program. The youth learned traditional Arabic rhythms, the history of Arabic drumming, and culminated their lessons with an outdoor concert alongside the full Yalla Drum ensemble.

July 19, 2025 Our community members gathered to learn traditional Lebanese wood-burning in a workshop facilitated by Lebanese American artist Maya Saliba. They learned the intricacies of the craft, cultural motifs, and craved out their own pieces to take home!

July 19, 2025 Yalla Drum was honored to represent the SWANA region in this public multicultural festival. They played traditional Arabic pieces for a vibrant audience of all ages and ethnicities, and celebrated the richness of Arabic cultural traditions.