Fans who attended the NBA game on the evening of April 1 between the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers had a rare opportunity to experience a part of Albanian culture and heritage.
This was because the United Center in Chicago hosted an Albanian Heritage Night, organized by the Albanian-American Community in the state of Illinois.
“In the United Center we marked a first moment for our community. Together we brought Albanian culture to one of the biggest stages in Chicago – with representation from all our regions,” the community wrote in a Facebook post. “Thank you to everyone who came and supported us. If we want more moments like this, we must continue to organize and grow together.”
This marks the first time in NBA history that such a cultural event featuring Albanian music and dance has taken place during a game.
“It was very good, 650+ Albanians,” said Fatos Brahimi, a board member of the Albanian-American Community in Illinois, for KosovaPress.
“For the first time in history, our children danced ‘xhamadani vija-vija’ among the Bulls. It was heartwarming.”
Performances at the United Center were delivered by the groups “Arbëria Chicago,” “Shqiponjat e Chicagos,” “Ensemble,” and the Albanian School “Kongresi i Manastirit.”
The creative director and choreographer of the event was Altin Naska.
Such events are not uncommon during NBA games, which attract extremely large audiences.
However, never before in the nearly 80-year history of the world’s strongest basketball league has an event of this kind, organized by Albanians, taken place.
