West African Drum & Dance

West African
Drum and Dance

Troupe Da-Da African Dance and Drum Ensemble will take the children on a journey through West Africa. We will visit Mali, Guinea, Ivory Coast, and more.

Pennsylvania Curriculum Standards

(A=Assembly; W=Workshop; R=Residency)

9.1 Production, Performance and Exhibition of Dance, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts A, W, R

9.2 Historical and Cultural Contexts A, W, R

10.5 Concepts, Principles and Strategies of Movement W, R

15.4 Learning Through Experience A, W, R

25.3 Pro-Social Relationships with Adults W, R

25.4 Pro-Social Relationships with Peers W, R

Art Form(s): Music, Dance, Spoken Word/Literary Arts

Genre: African/African-American

Instrument(s):

Aerophone/ Membranophone: Voice
Membranophones: Djembe, Doundoun, Sangban, Kenkeni
Idiophones: Gankogui Bells, Kenken Bells, Wooden Sticks, Shekere, Axatse

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Little Ones

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Assembly, Workshop, and Residency Offerings

West African Drum and Dance Assembly

Troupe Da-Da African Dance and Drum Ensemble will take the children on a journey through West Africa. We will visit Mali, Guinea, Ivory Coast, and more. Accompanied by our percussionists we will learn how to communicate with the drum by learning the Call known as the Break which will guide us through our dance. This call will tell us when to start, stop and change to the next movement. At this time we will learn the steps to the dance that coincide with the region in which our dance comes from. Next we will organize the steps to compile a dance. We will also learn the song that goes with the particular dance. At the end of the residency the children will perform the dance we have learned.

Best for: ELC • PreK-12 • Students with Disabilities • After-School/Community

Also available as a Workshop or Residency! (Residency can be in-person or offered via video.)

Featuring: Troupe Da Da African Dance and Drum Ensemble

Troupe Da Da African Dance and Drum Ensemble was Founded by Renee 'Oyin' Hardy in Philadelphia Pennsylvania in 2002. Troupe Da Da ‘s repertoire includes a variety of traditional West African and Afro-Cuban dances. Dressed in colorful, authentic costumes and singing in traditional African languages, the dancers of Troupe Da-Da move gracefully to the powerful rhythms of the Djembe & Dundun, drums from Guinea West Africa, and the Conga & Bata drums of Cuba. Troupe Da-Da also plays a number of African percussion instruments such as the Log Drums from Ginuea, West Africa , the Talking drum from Nigeria, and the Sekere (hand drum) also played in West Africa and Cuba. The mission of Troupe Da-Da is to represent traditional West African and Cuban culture at the highest level of artistic excellence through the preservation and presentation of Traditional dancing as well as masquerade, music and storytelling. We seek to expand the cultural awareness of African contributions to the arts through educational programs and performances that highlight the social and ritualistic customs of the people of the African Diaspora.

Joined Musicopia: 2017