African-American Dance Ensemble @ Allen Theatre 2/19
"Peace, Love, Respect for eeeverybody!" intones "Baba Chuck" at the beginning of a typical concert and you know it's going to be feel-good, family-friendly and multicultural. But that first impression might imply a temporary uplift that quickly fizzles out, and Davis and company have a certain staying power. From 1980 to 1984 Davis' affiliation with the prestigious American Dance Festival in Durham, North Carolina produced concerts which morphed into gigantic rituals that overflowed auditoriums and turned audience members into participants. The DanceAfrica Festival at Brooklyn Academy of Music, of which Davis is Founding Elder and Artistic Director, is a 28-year Memorial Day tradition. In a way, importing African culture to the U.S. is nothing new. Vernacular dance among white as well as black Americans has been offering interpretations of African dances since the Cakewalk was all the rage in the last half of the 1800s, and the Charleston in the 1920s. Davis is able to go beyond "got a new dance and it goes like this" because back in 1968 he had the vision and the passion to commit to an ongoing study of African dance, making annual trips to Africa. "That is the key," says Jewel Jackson, Executive and Artistic Director of Cleveland's African Soul Dance Theater. "Baba Chuck is a pioneer as an African-American who not only celebrates this art, but who studies it continuously; he is one of the few who has sat at the feet of the elders; he presents each dance in its cultural context." Jackson relates how when she studied with Ballets National du Senegal, "everyone knew Baba Chuck." A similar thing happened when she went for her certification in the Gambia, she says. Davis had been there before her and had been the first of a very few to gain the respect of the elders for his knowledge of not only the dances, but also the language, customs, songs and rhythms of the culture. See it Sat 2/19 starting 2PM at Allen Theatre. Call 241-6000. http://www.playhousesquare.com. from Cool Cleveland contributors Elsa Johnson and Victor Lucas vicnelsa@earthlink.net
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