Reluctantly, I stepped out of the car and onto the dirt ground. Being only ten years old, I expected little of that day, and swore to myself that I would not enjoy the powwow. My mother and father, who held my hands as we walked, assured me that I would have fun, and possibly learn something as well. Doubt hung heavy over my head, but I said nothing. The swirling puffs of dirt that flew from my shoes distracted me as we headed towards the center of the clearing. All that I understood, as the various mixture of dust and rock continued to swirl, was that I walked, surrounded by strangers who resembled my mother more than they resembled me, and those who resembled me, more or less, were dressed in regalia. Bells and tassels hung from their …show more content…
“Here they come, watch,” my mother said. One by one yet all together, the dancers flooded the circle, steadily, patiently, methodically. As the beating of the drum raced and grew wild with the number of dancers, so did my mind. Absorbed was my frail soul in this dust storm of dancers. The dancers flapped, galloped, and pranced in harmonious chaos; their leather tassels swept the ground— or, more accurately, melded with the earth— as they swayed with the beat of tradition. The puffs of dirt flew once more, up towards the turquoise sky and the effervescent sun that sat happily on a cloud. I remember grasping my mothers hand out of fear for being consumed by the impressive, motley storm, and I knew at that point that its beauty would never escape my memory. A cool breeze swept the crowd and myself, creating a calming air and peaceful quiet amongst us all. The breeze blew away my doubt, blew away my confusion, blew away my fear. I did not know if the quiet that consumed the crowd once again was caused by the shock of what just took place, or by relief that the world was normal again. Silence drew tears from my eyes, though not out of sadness. What was it about the nature of this place that affected me …show more content…
Men and women, both adults and children, joined in from the crowd in what is called “the friendship dance.” Children beat on the drums and hopped and skipped like the dancers, but in poor replication. Adults blissfully bounced along to the beat, though they did not know the songs or the steps. The natives helped the children and adults with great pleasure, spreading their culture to others through entertainment and a massive event. It appeared frivolous to me, though I continued to watch. Hands were held, laughter was shared. Songs arose slowly from each group as the teacher guided his pupils through the hums and bellows. Several words and phrases such as chi hollo li and wado flew up in the air. These separate races, separate tribes, separate families, moved as one. They made the dirt fly once more, together, causing the diverse mixture of rocks and pebbles and pieces of plants soar. Loss, renewal, death, new life, acceptance, and unity flew with them. I felt the kindness drip from my dark eyes and fall down my clay cheek bones, forming valleys in the thin sheet of dirt on my face. I grabbed a hand, and bounced
Every dance that is created by a choreographer has a meaning and or purpose behind it. The dance choreographed could be used to send a political, emotional, or a social message. Regardless of the message being sent, each dance created possesses a unique cultural and human significance. This essay will examine and analyze two dance works from history and give an insight into what each dance work provided to the society of its time.
The dancers begin in unison in a large clump. They dance together with slow movements; reaching up with their arms straight and palms open. It is to be noted that when they stretch their arms up, they tilt their head and look up as well. Throughout the piece the dancers repeat this movement, which represents reaching and praying to God. The dancers are constantly reaching up, embodying their despair and their yearning for help. As the dance progresses, the dancers repeatedly break out of the clump in the center and do different movements and their own sequences. After this, they always go back to their clump and do synchronized movement. Their constant breaking away from the group symbolizes their continual want to be free, as well as their persistency. On the other hand, their constant going back to the group shows how African-Americans will always be joined together by their culture, prayer, and hardships. Additionally during the piece, multiple dancers will run up to another dancer and jump or hold onto them, and then they do a couple of movements together. This shows how they are reliant and dependent on each other, and how they need each other throughout their suffering. Lastly, Much of the movement in this section possesses the downward energy characteristic of African dance, which symbolizes a connection to the earth. The choices Ailey made choreographically communicates all
The story explores many vital concepts accompanied by beautiful illustrations. I felt a strong sense of cultural understanding, spirituality and connection to family and land as though I was on this journey too. I could sense an underlying meaning in each dance, holding great importance to Bertie’s family and a strong connection to their culture. Pryor has attempted to fuse the then and now, by speaking of changes in the land, from a once spiritual gathering place, to a now busy town street where through food, they keep the culture alive (Pryor, 2010).
Learning about Dance: Dance as an Art Form and Entertainment provides visions into the many features of dance and inspires scholars to keep an open mind and think critically about the stimulating, bold, ever-changing and active world of dance. Learning about Dance is particularly useful for those who do not have a wide and diverse dance contextual, such as students in a preliminary level or survey dance course. This book consists of twelve chapters. Chapter one dance as an art form focuses on the basic structures of dance. Dance is displayed through the human body, it has the control to communicate and induce reactions. Dance can be found in many different places, it enables the participants and seekers to touch and knowledge the joy of movement. Dance is discovered as being one of the oldest art forms worldwide. Dance existed in early cultures was recognized in a sequence of rock paintings portrayed dance. Since this discovery of rock paintings, several other forms of art have been found that depict dance. People used rituals in order to worship the gods and believed that the rituals held magical and spiritual powers. During the ancient period civilizations sentient decisions began to be made with regard to dance. Other periods that had an impact on dance were the medieval period, the renaissance period, and the contemporary period. Chapter two the choreographer, the choreographer is a person who comes up with the movements created into a dance routine. The choreographer expresses themselves through choreography because this is their way of communicating with the audience. In order to be a choreographer you must have a passion for dance. Each choreographer has their own approaches and ways of making up a routine. Choreographers ...
...ating with each other and these are the same values that are being passed on to this generation. The dancers in South-central Los Angeles, uses this form of art to express their feelings and it a form of communicating just like their ancestors did back in there days. At the same time, it allows them to have a much deeper connection with their roots.
Considering descendants’ effort to bring this culture back in society, this entire dancing performance, masks, and the idea of interacting with the outside world must not have been merely correlated to their religious and spiritual ritual. It might have been their identity; a symbolic of their society which their ancestors had built and passed down to them.
" The villagers were all off stage reading psalms and chanting prayers. Their presence is that of annoyance, menace, and threat. This builds up... ... middle of paper ... ...
He said “The dancers go around, they go around and” (line.2). This phrase is a descriptive one that explain to us how people were dancing. Furthermore, the author took most lines on his poem to describe the specific way people were dancing, because he was mostly passionate about the dancers and the way they were shaking their bodies and hips. Also, at some festival, people perform traditional dances that can be new to us and sometimes impossible for us to dance. Although, this poem reminds me of my culture dance moves, it also reminds me the fact that I still cannot perform some of my culture’s dance moves.
Shame, embarassment, humiliation, self-loathing, loss of respect and remorse? It was the female who was meant to feel all of those emotions after a night of regrettable sex, a random hook-up or a drunken one night stand, not the guy. However, as Stuart stood at the door next to Sofia, with a hopefull expression painted across his face, everyone of those emotions flowed through him at her respond to his request for another date. And they hadn't even had sex on their first.
...tly. My wrists rotate and I delicately twist my fingers in the moist air as my hand-made red and black dress swishes with each pass I make. The long fringes of my manton swing smoothly at my sides as I dance with the clapped rhythm. I dance without stopping as each ancient song blends into the next. As the hours pass by I know I could dance fortever and forget about tomorrow.
I hurl a small black stone into blueness. There is lightness in my open palm. I open my arms up to my shoulders and feel the wind, hot with sparks of lightening, sweep up my face. I wonder what happened to my grandmother’s one true love. Where is he? Although there is a strong temptation, I resist flapping my arms. Let all the people looking up at my silhouette mistake me for a soaring eagle, soaring above a million more storms to come. The ghost of a flightless bird takes the first drop of rain into her mouth and soars. Soars; just like that.
The vivid memory of the plains never leaves me. I can return to this place at any moment. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. My lungs are filled with the clean and pure air, a welcome change from the thick hazy air of the outside world. I am alone with only my thoughts and emotions to keep me company. The summer breeze, warm upon my face is filled with the sweet smell of the tall billowing grass.
Then all of a sudden a bright light flashed in front of my eyes, drawing me forward like a moth to a flame. As a got up, I was relieved, happy to get up and walk towards the light. As I slowly went across a beautiful stone bridge leading toward the light, I could feel the warmth and love of my family and friends. I was finally relieved of all my pain, all of my burdens. I was as free as a bird, light as a feather.
The sound of nothing was eerie. It may have been silent outside, but there were a million thoughts running through my mind. Experiencing the camp in person was nothing like what I read or heard in history class. Suddenly standing where thousands of people stood 70 years ago in pain, starvation, and sickness, everything became real. The eerie feeling continued as I walked through the camp.
I never forget my grandpa’s sky-blue antique bicycle and its’ two gigantic wheels. It didn’t have a break, but it made a little squeak sound every now and then which brought out more of its’ oldie character. I would paddle that bicycle through my peaceful, car-less road. The trees on the side of the road with their arms arched inward made the way seem like a tunnel. The little bits of sunbeams that sneaked in between the leaves, looked like the sparkling Christmas tree lights. When the tree tunnel ended the paddling also stopped, and the gravity took control because it was going down the hill. With the sudden acceleration and the bursting of full blazing sunshine, I closed my eyes, feeling the speed all over my body. Red, pink, yellow, and white Cosmos flowers, which replaced the trees on the side, were the first colors back into my little peaking eyes. As I rode through the flower tunnel, now slow and calm again, I could hear the fall wind whistle.