BAM Presents DanceAfrica 2021, Celebrating the Ancestral Energy of Haiti
Company:
BAM
BAM Presents DanceAfrica 2021, Celebrating the Ancestral Energy of Haiti
The festive Memorial Day weekend tradition returns with virtual offerings, including an evening of premieres by HaitiDansco, Àṣẹ Dance Theatre Collective, The Fritzation Experience, Rara Tou Limen, and more, Saturday, May 29 at 7pm EDT View Trailer Here
The 44th annual celebration also includes a choreographers’ conversation, a special event for teens, visual arts, FilmAfrica, the digital DanceAfrica Bazaar, and more
Bloomberg Philanthropies is the Season Sponsor
May 18, 2021/Brooklyn, NY—DanceAfrica—the nation’s largest African and African Diasporic dance festival pays homage to the ancestral energy of Haiti, a metonym for Black liberation. Under the artistic direction of Abdel R. Salaam, BAM will produce a unique virtual event of dance, music, and community around the theme Vwa zanset yo: y'ap pale, n'ap danse!, in Haitian Creole, or "Ancestral voices: they speak...we dance!". On Saturday, May 29 at 7pm EDT, the highly anticipated DanceAfrica 2021 will feature premiere performances by HaitiDansco (Cap Haitien, Haiti), Rara Tou Limen (Oakland), Àṣẹ Dance Theatre Collective(Brooklyn), and The Fritzation Experience (Brooklyn). Each company pays tribute to Haiti through traditional dance—Yanvalou Maskawon, Banda, Nago, Petro, and Parigol.
The month-long celebration also includes other festival favorites and new programs providing global access to an array of performances, music, film, workshops, conversations, and more. New DanceAfrica programs include a Choreographers' Conversation on May 19 at 7pm with Artistic Director Abdel R. Salaam and this year’s artists; a public art installation A Return: Liberation as Power (May 24—31), featuring six Haitian visual artists’ meditation on liberation, an iteration of BAM’s digital billboard-based series curated by Larry Ossei-Mensah; a special “for teens by teens” event Haiti In Full Scope—exploring the history, art, and culture of Haiti; and more. Details on all programs and events linked below and here.
Created in 1977 under Founding Elder Chuck Davis's artistic direction, DanceAfrica has evolved into a highly anticipated and high-spirited Memorial Day weekend tradition that brings together the entire community. This year the tradition is reimagined as a virtual celebration allowing audiences from around the world the opportunity to be a part of the DanceAfrica community and experience new content designed and directed for screen.
DanceAfrica 2021 Calendar:
May 4—June 14 DanceAfrica Bazaar
May 19 DanceAfrica 2021: Choreographers' Conversation
May 19 Launch of DanceAfrica Timeline (Archives)
May 24—31 A Return: Liberation as Power (Visual Art)
May 28 —June 3 FilmAfrica
May 28 Haiti In Full Scope: DanceAfrica 2021 Teen Event
May 29 DanceAfrica Community Workshop at Brooklyn Bridge Park
Conservatory
May 29 DanceAfrica 2021 Performance - Vwa Zanset Yo: Y'ap Pale,
N'ap Danse! "Ancestral Voices: They Speak... We Dance!"
May 29 DanceAfrica Dance Party with DJ Hard Hittin Harry
May 30 DanceAfrica 2021 “Community Celebration Day”
May 31 DanceAfrica Adaptive Workshop at Mark Morris Dance Group
May 31 DanceAfrica Master Class at Mark Morris Dance Group
Click for complete details on DanceAfrica 2021 Festival Programs and Events
DanceAfrica Spiritwalkers_Photography by Paul Bartlett
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