Spectators at the Memorial Union Theatre were whisked away on a global adventure to commemorate the UW Dance Program's 80th anniversary during the World Dance Celebration Saturday.
The event, held as part of campus-wide cultural showcase, Arts Night Out, featured performances rooted in multiple traditions, including African, Celtic and Gaelic dances, classical dance from India, Aztec rituals, Chinese martial arts and modern dance from UW-Madison students.
According to UW dance professor Jin-Wen Yu, the event's main objective was "to celebrate differences of cultures and share the cultural pride of all the world."
Beyond representing cultural diversity, Yu also wanted a show that would present a "professional caliber performance while including intimate community dance." To this end, he featured internationally known artists whose work has been presented at the Kennedy center and to President Bill Clinton as well as local community groups and UW-Madison students. The 80-plus performers danced, drummed and sang to a full house, which was packed with so many people that organizers ran out of programs.
The event showcased dancers from all over the world, each contributing their own unique expertise.
"I'm just excited to be sharing his culture and history with Madison," said Habib Iddrisu of the Ghana All Stars. Iddrisu has been drumming since he was six years old, won an award in 1993 as Ghana's best dancer, and has had his work performed for President Clinton and at the Kennedy Center. He grew up in Northern Ghana in a family of historians and court musicians. Now he's Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern where he hopes to continue the family tradition and be an entertainer and educator.
UW-Madison senior Natalia Hildner brought an entirely different flavor with her Indian dancing. Hildner is from Peru but became interested in Indian dance when she saw a performance at age five. She now performs as a soloist and recently performed at the Kalashram Dance Festival in Delhi, India. Natalia travels back and forth to India regularly to receive instruction from her guru.
"Usually I perform at Indian Festivals, so this is a great opportunity to showcase Indian dance to a wider audience," she said.
The differing groups took the audience back in time to ritual Aztec traditions and Chinese Ribbon Dance and into the future with innovative modern dance pieces. The performance introduced new dances and rituals successfully and entertainingly.
The group Ballet Folklorico Mexico started the night off with a traditional courtship dance that featured a guitar, lute and whistle-like instruments. Madison's own Scottish country dancers were next with a showcase of dances that have been performed in Scotland for hundreds of years.
They were followed by a group of UW-Madison students performing with Jamaican dancer Chris Walker, who also choreographed their part of the program. Walker has toured internationally with the National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica (NDTC) as choreographer and dancer. His vibrant and innovative talent was what made this piece such a success.
The dancers performed a modern take on "Love theme from the Godfather" by Jazz. The 13 students caught the audience's attention with energetic moves reminiscent of clocks gone haywire.
Hildner's Indian dance kept the audience engaged with a technical display of graceful movements and footwork before the Ghana All Stars came on drumming and dancing in a feat of athleticism. Their piece, called "Yaa yaa kole," encouraged young people to get married. Literally translated, the title means a man should keep begging even if the lady doesn't want to get married immediately.
The second half opened very dramatically with sounds evocative of a rain forest. The Ballet Folklorico Mexico entered in full Aztec traditional customs consisting of headdresses at least 10 feet in diameter and not much else. Their piece gave the audience a unique insight into ancient rituals. The Gaelic Fusion Dance Company, a local group, was next with a performance set to the sounds bagpipes, drums and an electric guitar.
Jin-Wen Yu then preformed a "Tai Ji Quan" dance, a combination of traditional Chinese martial arts and music, a meditative and peaceful piece. The Ghana All Stars concluded the evening with "Baamaaya," a piece that incorporated religious, social and historical connotations.
Though none of the dancing was typical for an American viewing audience, it was still appreciable and showed that dance is definitely a cross-cultural experience.
