A transforming African Dance and Drum Festival BRATTLEBORO – African Dance Vermont and the Arts Council of Windham County present the 10th annual Abene African Dance and Drum Festival, Aug. 21 through 24 at the Brattleboro Stone Church, 210 Main Street in Brattleboro. The Abene African Dance & Drum Festival is transitioning and expanding this year to include visiting, as well as our local, dance and drum teachers. We honor Caro Diallo who started African dance in the Brattleboro area ten years ago. We are immensely grateful to him for all he has given us, as he steps away from the festival to allow it to form into a collaborative, community event. We are also thrilled that he will be offering his skilled and spirited classes three times a week in Brattleboro until early October: Wednesdays at the Brattleboro Stone Church, Thursdays a Zumba class at Supreme Fitness, 1589 Putney Road and Fridays at Sobo Studio, 74 Cotton Mill Hill. This years festival features master dance teachers: Georgette Adjie, Pape Ba, Yalani Bangoura, Tacko Cissokho, Kabisko Kaba and master drum teacher: Namory Keita. Accompanying the dance classes on drums will be Namory Keita, Lisa Newell, Raoul Ombang, Cheikh Ngom, Vieux Toure, Jamurrell Stanley (on Thursday), Shanti Star and others. Wyoma will offer a yoga class on Saturday morning. Georgette Adjie, from Cameroon, currently resides in Brattleboro and brings her rich cultural traditions to us through teaching, performing and educational tours. She has danced and toured with the National Ballet of Cameroon and started The Singo Dance Troupe, which performs internationally as well as regionally. She teaches monthly in Brattleboro. Pape Ba is a master drummer and dancer from Senegal. He performed with and was one of the leaders of Les Ballets Africaine de Sangomare, a premier African dance troupe in West Africa. Pape has taught and performed with Jeh Kulu in Burlington, Vermont and at Marlboro College, and current teaches on a regular basis in Northampton, Massachusetts and Brattleboro. Visiting guest teacher, Yalani Bangoura, is a dancer, acrobat, vocalist and spectacular performer from Guinea. Yalani has been dancing for over thirty years and toured throughout Europe, China, and America with Les Merveille De Guinea, one of Guineas première drum and dance ensembles. Yalani is one of the most coveted African dancers today and currently resides in New Jersey and regularly teaches in New York and Philadelphia, Penn. Kabisko Kaba, from Guinea, has danced with Les Merveille de Guinea, done a teaching residency at Lincoln Center in N.Y., and been a resident performing artist for Walt Disney World. Since living in western Massachusetts he has taught at the Five Colleges and is currently the African dance teacher at the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter School. He also teaches regularly in Northampton, Mass. Visiting guest teacher Tacko Cissokho began studying dance as a child in Senegal. She has danced with the most prominent dance companies and singers throughout Senegal and led the Ballet Nationale du Senegal, touring internationally for over twenty-five years. She has taught dance workshops across the United States. Namory Keita will teach West African drumming on Saturday and Sunday. Keita is an accomplished Guinean musician who was the lead drummer for his village, Sangbaralla. He has performed and taught worldwide and played on several recordings. Currently he tours with the Akwaaba Ensemble. He teaches a weekly drum class in Brattleboro and is skilled at meeting the learning needs of students with various levels of experience. Djembe drums will be provided for those students who need them. Wyoma will teach a Saturday morning yoga class at the Abene Festival. She is a holistic healer and master dancer who offers classes, workshops, and trainings in an integrated model of movement and healing. She has traveled and taught extensively in all parts of Africa. For over 40 years, she has performed and conducted workshops throughout the U.S. and internationally. She is also the co-founder of Ngoma Drum and Dance in Boston. On Saturday evening a Gala Performance at the Brattleboro Stone Church will be preceded at 6:30 p.m. by a Malian meal offered for sale by Dienba Macalou (of Brattleboro Farmers Market fame). World music percussionist and beat poet, Tony Vacca, along with Wyoma, will set you on the journey into a celebration of Africa. This year an original storyline is being developed and choreographed especially for the Abene Festival by Pape Ba and Kabisko Kaba. The piece is being rehearsed all summer and will be presented by the festival dancers and drummers during Saturday night’s show. Throughout the festival African wares will be for sale. Please join us in this high-spirited experience of the cultures of West Africa! To see a video giving you a flavor of what you can anticipate go to: youtube/watch?v=fn Kz52tQLao. For a full schedule and fees see africandancevt. Tickets for the classes and performance are available on the web site. See also Abene African Dance & Drum Festival Vermont on Facebook, write to africandancevt@gmail, or call 802-380-5152. On Saturday evening a Gala Performance at the Brattleboro Stone Church will be preceded at 6:30 p.m. by a Malian meal offered for sale Namory Keita will teach West African drumming on Saturday and Sunday. Wyoma will teach a Saturday morning yoga class at the Abene Festival.
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 21:46:26 +0000
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