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Sankofa Danzafro

Detrás del Sur: Danzas para Manuel
Rafael Palacios
Show
Colombie

Afro-Colombian pulse

The powerful choreographic voice of Sankofa Danzafro makes its electrifying Danse Danse debut. A continuous dialogue between percussion, song, African rhythms, urban and contemporary dance; the vibrant expression of a tightly knit community.

Dancing as a way of being heard. For Rafael Palacios, a legend in his country, dance is a way of speaking out. In Medellín, Colombia—the Latin American country with the second largest Afro-descendant population (after Brazil)—Palacios seeks to deconstruct the stereotypes associated with the Black experience. Through his company Sankofa Danzafro, founded more than 25 years ago, he has allowed many Afro-Colombians to reclaim their dignity through movement. The show pays tribute to the literary masterpiece Changó el Gran Putas by the great writer Manuel Zapata Olivella (1920–2004), which traces the saga of the Black African diaspora in the New World. At the confluence of past and present; a total sensory experience.

Media partner

Artists

Choreographer
Rafael Palacios
Throughout his career, he has strived to develop training processes designed for teachers and dancers of all levels, as well as children. As director of the Steps in the Earth project, he received in 2010 the UN’s recognition for his contribution to Afrodescendent Social Inclusion in Latin America.
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Company

Sankofa Danzafro

Artistic Director Rafael Palacios’ motivation has been to rewrite the history of Black communities through the eyes of those directly involved, Afro-descendants in Colombia and elsewhere. Palacios’ view is that history has always been written by the oppressor, while the oppressed were denied a voice. So, utilizing the voices of the Sankofa dancers and musicians, he has been creating choreographies for over 20 years focused on retelling history from a point of view that has been ignored for centuries.

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Credits

Choreographic direction Rafael Palacios.
Choreographic assistant
Yndira Perea Cuesta.
Lights and set design
Álvaro Tobón.
Costume design
Diana Echandía.
Research advisor
Carlos Correa.
Musical composition
Juan José Luna Coha, Harold Enrique Tenorio & Kevin Leandro Cortes.

Musicians
Juan José Luna Coha, Gregg Anderson Hudson Mitchell, Danny Mosquera Lemos.

Performers
Yndira Perea Cuesta, Piter Alexander Angulo Moreno, Raitzza Nathalia Castañeda Torres, Diego León de los Rios Naranjos, Liliana Hurtado Hinestroza, Katerin Moreno Aguilar, Maryeris Mosquera Batista, Jhoan Andrés Mosquera Ibarguen, Sandra Vanesa Murillo Mosquera, María Elena Murillo, Estayler Osorio Fuentes, William Camilo Perlaza Micolta, Andrea Bonilla Ospina, Sandra Catalina Mosquera Moreno.

Thank you to
Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo, 14th Book and Culture Festival, Plu con Pla, South Pacific Folkloric School Foundation TUMAC, Wangari Danza Afrocontemporánea, Nuevo Horizonte Music School - Tumaco, Afro-Colombian Integration House - Mayor's Office of Medellín, 4ESKUELA, Pedro Nel Gómez Museum, University of Manchester- England.

Premiere
May 2021, in coproduction with Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo, Bogotá.

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