Stripping the Emperor - Kereem Morgan 163

In her essay, Stripping the Empperor, Gottschild grasps my attention when discussing how the “Africanist” aesthetic has had an overt influence on American dance. Based on what I have witnessed throughout my dance experience, I find much validity in her suggestion that embracing the conflict, polycentrism, high-affect juxtaposition, ephebism and the aesthetic of the cool all came from African culture and overtime has been implemented in American dance. In regards to Earl Tucker and his famous Snake Dance, which I looked up online to watch for movement clarification, I can see that Gottschild suggestion is true. Specifically, I think Earl Tucker’s dance had to do mainly with ephebism and the aesthetic of the cool. I strongly believe that in the 21st century, there is still a dominant power over dance – there are those who still dictate (body type, size, race and skill experience) in certain dance arenas. However, I must say that I really do not think that there is an European cultural power dominance over African dance. I think it is time for African dance to take on its own language to become a hub where other dance cultures and forms stem from. In addition, another interesting aspect of this article for me was the overt discussion in regards Balanchine incorporating the African Aesthetic into ballet, which I view as a highly compelling argument that she backs up well with her descriptions. This is a very informative read that I enjoyed encountering.