Dancing is an activity meant for pleasure and entails body movements summing up to a form of art. Step Afrika is one of the groups that enhance the art of dancing. Step Afrika group was founded by Brian Williams, a Howard University alumnus. Step Afrika was established in 1994 and famously due to it being among the top ten African American dance companies in the United States. The author of Step Afrika group chose to explore the theme of migration using stepping as a form of dance which involves using the foot dances, chants and hand clapping accompanied with some upbeat music in the background. The men and women have different dancing styles in Step Afrika group.
The dance presented by the Step Afrika group entailed different choreographic tools that suited their unique style of dancing. The background music is played soothingly, enhancing the flow of the dance. The stage lights though being different, whereby some were dark, and some had different colors met the purposes they were meant for by the choreographer. The dark lights gave room for the bright colors worn by the dances to be viewed clearly. The colored lights enhanced the clear vision of the dancers, especially when wearing dark costumes and some being bare-chested. The costumes were well chosen since they tried to communicate more about the cultures of the communities making them cultural ambassadors before the audience. These tools were well utilized since they met their functions as portrayed.
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"Arts, Visual and Performing/Visual and Performing Arts, General".
I felt entertained and satisfied with the Step Afrika dance. The major theme brought out by the dancers is Migration. Migration as a theme has been used to mean the African_American painter’s migration series. The drum beats and the set of the drums represent the Africans and the African culture. The drums have also been used to set the mood generally in the dance. The movement of Africa to America South shows the era of slavery. This era of slavery is seen during the coordinated movement of the drummers.
The dance represented by the Step Afrika group is a bit different from the modern dance we are taught in class. Change is inevitable in the modern society we live in. Discoveries regarding technology and its advancement have led to many changes in the art of dancing. During the period of the Step Afrika dance, we talk of drums as the only music accompaniments compared to the modern society where we have the guitars, keyboards, violins, trumpets and many others. These musical instruments create a rhythm that makes dancing more enjoyable. Second, the Step Afrika group had mostly custom-made costumes to represent the cultures of the communities involved. The modern dance groups wear costumes that represent modernity. For example, they can choose to put t-shirts printed with the name of their dance group and even the name of the agency that sponsors their shows. The Step Afrika dance group used a specific form of dancing namely stepping. Stepping as a form of dancing involves movements of some specific body parts compared to the modern dance which entails even acrobatics. Apart from the differences between the two dance groups, we have their similarities.
Both the Step Afrika and the dance taught in the class have their roles which they play in the society. For example, the modern dance entertains and also acts as a job opportunity in the society. The modern dance enhances nurturing of talent in the society while the Step Afrika dance group also entertained its society and marked as a reminder of the cultures exchanged between the communities. The Step Afrika dance group served as the cultural preservative tool of the Africans and the Americans. The Step Afrika dance group also served as an educative tool used to pass information about the history of the Africans and the Americans from one generation to the other. Both the dance groups have choreographers who have different themes brought out through their dance. The dance groups taught in a class have their specific names like the Step Afrika dance group had. The tittles of the dance groups have their meanings. For example, “Step Afrika” means dedicated to Africa and America.
The choreographer succeeded in conveying the message. The drum beats well displayed the theme. The culture well represented by the costumes, above all the form of dance inculcated and portrayed the African and the American way of living. Stepping as a form of dance shows how much the two cultures were at peace with each other and how the people of that appreciated their culture, how they were willing to preserve it and support it to the end. The Step Afrika group was famous and appreciated by all hence being known as a cultural ambassador in the United States.
In conclusion, more could be added to the Step Afrika dance to enhance its betterment. Due to modern technology, more instruments could be added to create rhythm hence a nice flow of the dance. Modernized costumes can also be borrowed to enhance outward appearance earning more attraction from the audience. Also, more could also be added to the dance to bring out the theme. Movement as a theme should not only be shown through the drum beats only but also an action or a new dancing style can be borrowed. Modernization should not also be allowed to dominate the dance. For example, on the part of lights, traditional sources of light could be used like the lanterns to symbolize the traditional era. Lastly, more dancing styles can be added and even develop the old ones to capture the attention of the modern society.
