Art of Dance

Love this image of dancers from The Forgotten Angle Theatre Collaborative in Jo'burg during a performance. Beautiful marriage between the art of dance and the art of photography.

{photo: The Lightbox}

Just Dance: Sofia Boutella

I'm going to let you in on a small secret of mine - some mornings when I'm running or on a long ride on my bike, I like to pretend that I'm some super strong athlete. I have visions of winning the Boston marathon or having Lance Armstrong and Alberto Contador (dope charges notwithstanding) eating my dust! Of course - this is all pretty hilarious and even I find myself bursting into laughter at my own silly thoughts considering the light years between my current athletic capacity and those of real athletes.


Nevertheless, I continue to always find myself inspired by athletes so it goes without saying that I fell hook, line, and sinker for the new Nike Women campaign shot by Annie Leibovitz. How could you not be inspired by a bunch of women not only beautiful, but made even more stunning by bodies that scream "I can sooo kick your butt from Sunday to Sunday!" One of the women featured is Algerian dancer Sofia Boutella. What this woman does with her body goes beyond athleticism and merges into pure art and beauty. In addition to seeing are all over Nike world, you can see her busting a move in multiple music videos including the lead role in the Michael Jackson Hollywood tonight video.

{Photos: Annie Leibovitz for Nike via BKRW Sport + Abmuku}

Art Scene: Dada Masilo

In finding out about South African dancer Dada Masilo, I feel like I've found that tiny holy grail! You see I've been on a mini hunt for several months for black African ballet dancers and not only does Masilo fit bill perfectly, she also fuses this classic western dance form with traditional African dance moves to produce something that appears quite unique! She is definitely someone I'd love to see perform live! Dada - coming to D.C. anytime soon??

{Photo: Newtown, Artlink}

Diski Dance

It's been a while since I last posted about dancing so I was super excited when reader Tessa told me about the Diski Dance which has been made popular in South Africa in honor of the upcoming Fifa World Cup games. Basically the dance is all football (aka soccer) moves turned into a dance and from this commercial you can see that it's a totally good time! If that isn't enough, check out this Where the Hell is Matt? video which had me on the floor dying of laughter.

So go ahead and get your Diski on!! (even if it's only in the privacy of your bedroom like me!!)

Morning Inspiration

Let's start the day with this beautiful image that has been sitting on my desktop for quite a while. Isn't this South African ballerina (or perhaps model in ballerina clothes) beautiful?

{Photo: Kim Gray}

Art Scene: Salia Nï Seydou

Do you love to dance? I absolutely love dancing! When I'm feeling down and out, stepping to a great dance tune leads to the fastest recovery. When something great happens, my first instinct is to bust a move. I will even admit that when I'm having a crappy day at work, I'll close the door to my office, crank up a tune and just start dancing (luckily my office mates are just as insane so it's turns out to be super fun). Just dancing for 2 minutes in the middle of the day can make all the difference in the world to me. Honestly, in one of my next lives, I'm totally going to come back as a professional dancer!

As write all of this by way of introduction to Salia Nï Seydou. This dance company started 15 years ago in Burkina Faso when dancers Salia Sanou and Seydou Boro met in Drama school in Ouagadougou. Combining their love for drama, cinema and dance, this duo has provided a new expression of African dance which combines the meaning and emotion found in modern dance with the aesthetics found in traditional African dance. They have established the Center for Choreographic Development in Ouagadougou dedicated to all-African choreographic training and cultural exchange. Even though the company is based in Paris and tours heavily throughout France, the constant exchange between the two countries keeps things fresh.

Just looking at these images and the videos got me digging around the D.C. area for dance studios. I just totally need to make some adjustments in my schedule to be able to take a class!

So taking it back to where I started...do you love to dance? Where do you go dancing in your city/town/village?

{Photos: Salia Nï Seydou}

Stepping to the Beat - Afro-Peruvians

I have recently gained a particular interest in African descendants in the various countries of Latin America. I recently learned that there is a small percentage of Afro-Peruvians who generally reside in the coastal areas of Peru and can trace their roots way back to the 1500s when their ancestors were taken to Peru as slaves.

Afro-Peruvian dance is really amazing to watch. It is the perfect nexus Latin and African music and dance bringing in a lot of traditional Western African dance moves.


The San Francisco based group De Rompe y Raja does an amazing job of not only preserving this heritage but showcasing it to the rest of us sitting in the dark. If I lived in S.F. I would definitely be taking dance! In fact, according to Peruanista, there is a similar group in my own neck of the woods...now I just need to find a class!


Click here to see a great video of De Rompe y Raja performance and here to learn more about Afro-Peruvian music and dance.

*All pics from Flickr