Dear Friends,

For one special weekend in August of 2004, an amazing community of kindred spirits from throughout the Northwest and beyond gathered in a beautiful woodland west of Portland, Oregon. Through sun and rain we danced and played, we spoke earnestly of the pressing issues of our time, and we dreamed of possible futures fostered by our collective visions and efforts.

Everyone who attended the Festival in the Forest agreed it was a truly memorable and moving experience. The finest Cascadian hearts and minds came to Party with a Purpose, and what a party it was — stellar musical and visual artists, inspiring activists and vaudevillians, local foods grown and prepared with love, and so much more!

Designed as a fundraiser to help us secure a permanent festival site in southwest Washington, it was also, sadly, a financial failure. Many explanations have been offered — the rare mid-summer downpour, difficulties inherent in branding a new festival, competition from other events in the region — but the fact remains we took a big hit to our individual and collective finances. 

We've thought long and hard about how to keep Dancing Dragons alive, but have come to the difficult conclusion that it's time to break camp and direct our energies into other emergent projects.

Our website will be closing down this fall, but we’ve launched a new photo exchange at www.flickr.com/photos/dancingdragons. Please take time to visit and relive the Festival in the Forest. If you have photos you'd be willing to share, please drop an us an email (photos@dancingdragons.org). We'd very much like to add them to the archive.

Although the structure of Dancing Dragons is fading, the relations we've forged will continue to guide our work and feed our souls for years to come. Our heartfelt thanks to all our dedicated co-conspirators who gave so much of their time and resources. We look forward to dancing with you again soon!