A Taste of Africa
Feel the rhythm of the drums, explore the raw energy of the dance and be captivated by culture in this well rounded, educational incursion program.
Taste of Africa is a popular program that we have designed after years of teaching in schools in Australia and internationally. Students, teachers and the school community enjoy having a ‘taste’ of each of the three activities on offer as well as experiencing a high-energy world-class performance delivered by our talented artists.
Developed in collaboration with performing arts educator Belinda Annan (BCA, BT, Teacher of Drama at Melbourne Grammar School) it is an engaging and educational incursion package that caters for the very beginner to the more advanced and takes into account a range of learning needs. Our facilitators are among Australia’s best African performers making the workshops both inspiring and engaging.
A Taste of Africa works around the key theme of bringing the school community together. After enjoying a live performance including drumming, dance and acrobatics, students, teachers and school communities alike, are challenged to work together while having fun during the workshop. During the live performance, participants learn about life in a local village in Ghana. They hear stories and explore some of the everyday tasks that children their ages do like collecting water and carrying bowls on their heads.
In the drumming workshops, participants learn the basics of playing a djembe drum and build up to a point where they explore polyrhythmic drumming patterns, requiring them to listen to each other and work together in order to make music.
The dance workshop explores traditional West African dances. Students are usually unfamiliar with this technique and are challenged by the unique movement pathways.
A Taste of Africa celebrates the power of diversity in our ever-changing multicultural society. It brings school communities together, challenges their ideas of the African culture and allows them to connect with the artists in a meaningful way.
This incursion package has toured extensively throughout Victoria and Queensland including 5 times with Regional Arts Victoria and once with ArtsLink/Queensland Music Festival, as well as visiting many schools independently throughout Melbourne and Victoria.
Asanti Dance Theatre artists are extremely approachable, and the Q & A session is always popular. Questions are varied and the artists enjoy answering an array of questions like ‘Do you have TVs in Africa?’ and ‘What do you eat?’.
