UF’s annual African dance performance is returning to campus.
The College of the Arts and the School of Theatre and Dance will host the 20th Agbedidi African dance at the Constans Theatre from today through Sunday. Tickets are $17 for the general public and $13 for students.
The performance is a semester’s worth of work for students learning West African dance and culture. All dance majors have to take Agbedidi once. There are no prerequisites for the class, but 75 percent of the dancers are dance majors.
It’s a great opportunity to be exposed to people from many different backgrounds and get perspective as an American artist, said UF alumnus Larry Rosalez Lewis, the director’s assistant.
Agbedidi showcases not just West African dance styles but contemporary and modern styles as well. It covers a wide range of topics and emotions, from the feeling of being racially profiled to the joys of true happiness.
Although all the pieces get choreographed separately, there is a central storyline about migration and movement connecting the dances in the performance.
Each show is a different experience, and every year there is a new story to tell.
Mohamed DaCosta, originally from Guinea, is directing the show. He has been teaching West African dance and directing the annual performance since 2003.
Most schools don’t have many opportunities to learn about African culture, he said, and UF is one of only 10 colleges in the country that has any course like this.
Precious Roberts, a 23-year-old UF dance junior, said she has practiced West African dance styles since she was 12, and this is her second time performing in Agbedidi. She said she sees DaCosta as a mentor.
The show incorporates dance, music and acting for an interactive experience that is high tempo and fast paced, DaCosta said. Performers invite audience members to join on stage and become a part of the show.
The biggest goal of the performance is to invite people of all ethnicities to look at cultures different from their own.
“It’s not just seeing it,” DaCosta said. “You’re part of it.”
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 11/20/2014]
Pictured left to right: Dancers Diamia Foster, Daniel Morimoto, Amanda Ruiz and Larry Rosalez Lewis with drummer Aboubacar Soumah pose in costume for the Agbedidi performance. You can see it this weekend at the Constans Theatre at $17 for the general public and $13 for students.
