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DANCE DIASPORA TO PERFORM ON OBERLIN COLLEGE CAMPUS APRIL 25, 26 AND 27
APRIL 12, 2002-- Authentic dance from West Africa and Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Cuban dance from the New World will be performed April 25, 26 and 27 at Oberlin College, when Essence presents Dance Diaspora in concert.
The program -- the touring group's first performance of a full repertoire on its home campus since fall 1998 -- includes dances drawn from members' study with masters of Gambian and Guinean dance in West Africa and with world renowned folkloric groups and performers in Cuba.
Performing with the 12-member company will be the West African Drum Ensemble of Lorain Admiral King High School and the College drumming group Ilui Aiye, both led by Matthew Hill '00.
The concert marks Hill's farewell performance and that of senior dancers Abigail Nartey, Tai Collins and Patricia Ngnoumen.
Among the works to be presented will be Kuku, a reenactment of a baby-naming ceremony from Guinea Bissau and Mandiani. A sequence of steps performed with rapidly-increasing speed, Mandiani is considered the fastest dance in Africa.
Also to be presented will be Funga, a harvest and welcome dance with steps from the Vai people of Liberia to music from Yoruba in West Africa; and Candela, a traditional song from Spanish gypsies believed to be descendants of the Moors.
The College's student company was established as a touring ensemble by artist-in-residence and choreographer Adenike Sharpley in 1992 to broaden access to Africa's rich cultural heritage. For the last eight years, she and the student dancers have performed in venues throughout Ohio and up and down the Atlantic seaboard to widespread acclaim.
Media Contact: Betty Gabrielli
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