African Dance in New York City

Most articles we have read so far dealt with the African American side of black dance. However, this article was informative in explaining the other side of black dance that is now common in the American society: the African aspect.

It is interesting to note that many dancers who are acclaimed to have revolutionized modern dance actually learnt the basics from instructors who came from Africa. Notable names are Katherine Dunham, Chuck Davies and by extension, Alvin Ailey who got his basic training from Katherine Dunham. I think its an interesting fact that modern dance in America does not have its roots just from the slaves who lived in the south but from the African instructors who toured New York and other parts of America in the early 1920’s.Another exciting thing that I noted was about the type of dances done by Ismay Andrews’ dance company. This was one of the few times I have heard East Africa being mentioned when it comes to black dance.

It is sad, however, that despite all the hard work by the African dancers, most of them died in poverty or saw their companies grind to a halt because they lacked the sufficient funds.

Anthony

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