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DANCE GRENADA

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The Brooklyn-based Dance Grenada said on Monday that it will host its second annual international dance festival of Grenada from Oct. 22-24, 2021.

Under the theme “AfroFuturism and Our heART: Reimagining the Artform,” Dance Grenada said this year’s international dance festival “will take participants on a journey across the African Diaspora through dance with classes, including Caribbean Contemporary, Traditional Folk, Afro Haitian and Hip Hop.

“This year’s theme is centered around the ideologies of evolution,” said Dance Grenada Founder and Executive Director, Shola K. Roberts. “What are we as practitioners and preservers of the art form doing to move dance forward and what action are we taking to present our art in new ways.”

Grenadian American dancer, Shola K. Roberts. Kaiem Joseph/Sonix Productions

Using a hybrid model of in-person and virtual classes, Roberts said Dance Grenada will continue to “provide a platform for Grenadian and international dance artisans to share and increase their knowledge of traditional and contemporary dance styles and techniques.

“We started this festival at the height of the global pandemic when many thought it was impossible,” she said. “We got it done and had a successful inaugural year against all odds.

“Now in our second year, we are evolving and are still bringing that light,” Roberts added. “We are using dance as a tool to engage the community, and inspire and heal.”

Roberts said the three-day festival will include nine dance workshops and four panel discussions, as well as dynamic performances.

“Participants in this unique dance festival will enliven and enrich each other’s experience of dance and cultural heritage while adding to the larger Grenadian dance community,” Roberts said. “Dance artists, choreographers, and educators will facilitate and promote dance performances, preserve cultural legacy and strengthen community engagement.”

Dance Grenada will feature the following internationally-acclaimed teaching/performing artists: Akosua Akoto, Traditional West African (D.C./Maryland/ Ghana); Chanel DaSilva, Afro-Contemporary (Maryland); Nadia Dieudonné, Afro Haitian (NYC/ Haiti); Cecilia Griffith, Traditional Folk Dance Bele (Grenada); Otis Herring, African Styles (New Zealand); Qarrianne Blayr, Modern (Ohio); Alex Peters, Hip-Hop (United Kingdom); Shola K. Roberts, Contemporary Caribbean(NYC/ Grenada); and Keith Williams, Traditional Folk(Grenada).

For more information on Dance Grenada, visit www.dancegrenada.com.