He was big, black and beautiful…well actually, he wasn’t that tall, but he was black and he had a huge….afro.

Ok, I’ll get to the point. I’m talking about the best dance performances I’ve seen. And the reason they’ve been so great, is because they’re not just about dance. They use dance to tell a story or express a message.

The two most memorable dance performances I experienced this year are: “House of the Holy Afro” during the Sydney Festival in January 2008 and “The Firebird” in April 2008.

I can’t beat the show’s description the Sydney Festival guide:
“House of the Holy Afro is an audacious fusion of the urban and traditional, of gospel and house, of slam-poetry and Afro-pop into an explosive night of driving rhythms, soaring harmonies and outlandishly irreverent kitsch….Expect a show like no other, where body-moving house beats merge with songs from ancient shamanistic ceremonies and the uplifting gospel of township churches. Hypnotic singing gives way to hip poetry, outrageous costumes and uninhibited, high energy dancing that will have you on your feet and shaking your stuff in full-bodied agreement”.

From the moment my friends and I walked in the door, we were in a trance, captivated by their outrageousness, entertained with their dance and costume, stimulated with their political messages and moved by their music to dance like I’d never danced before: in full-spirited enjoyment. By far, the best entertainment experience of my life!  The performers interacted with the crowd and the best part was that you could dance while the show was going on..That performance set the benchmark for dance-based entertainment for me and I can only hope one day to find it again…or re-create it.

The next performance that swept me away in a more emotional level (it was a seated performance) was “The Firebird”. In the words of the creators: “THE FIREBIRD was a seamless blend of dance, music and story. Each dancer played a character, our Storyteller John wove the magic this ancient Russian lovestory between stunning dance and an exquisite, original music score, that included the sounds of sitar, kora, balafon, djembe, didjeridoo and vocals.”

I felt so uplifted, inspired and entertained at the end of the performance, desperate to spread my appreciation of the performance…then I remembered that’s exactly what I was there to do! See the interviews with the creators and performers on Webisode 10. Also, Mory Traore, the “Horse of Power” in the show, will be performing at uBERgroover.tv’s interactive dance event this Sunday 31st August. He will also be teaching us a few tribal moves, so check the forum for more info and join in the fun!