New activity – Step Afrika! Performance

We’ve been to many dance performances but nothing like that which was put on by the group Step Afrika! (the exclamation point is part of the name). From what we have gathered online, it started with historically African American fraternities and sororities but has its roots in traditional African dance. In particular, some of the areas that were mentioned were Western Africa/Nigeria and South Africa. The group “promotes stepping as an educational tool for young people, focusing on teamwork, academic achievement and cross-cultural understanding.” They performed several dances, including Ndlamu, which is a traditional dance of the Zulu people, and Isicathulo, or the “gumboot dance,” which is a tradition created by South African workers in the mining industry as a way of secretly communicating with each other by the stomping of their boots.

We were so impressed by the amount of energy and coordination this dance took and the group was highly entertaining. The music that came out of stomping their feet and slapping their bodies was great. The audience was whooping and clapping, and it was unlike anything we had been to. It’s a highly recommended evening of entertainment.