Dance Mission Theater to Present World Premiere Of RAICES ET RESISTANCE

Duniya Dance Company, Arenas Dance Company, and Dance Mission Theater's Liberation Academy will present the world premiere of Raíces et Résistance (or Roots and Resistance in Spanish/French), co-directed by Cuban choreographer Susana Arenas Pedroso and Guinean musician Bongo Sidibe. Raíces et Résistance explores the vibrant, layered, and largely unknown social-political relationship between Guinea, West Africa and Cuba, forged by the transatlantic slave trade as well as the post-colonial cultural exchange that began in the 1960s. Bringing together their cultural expertises, their passion, their senses of joy and justice, Pedroso and Sidibe have created a unique performance built on storytelling and cultural collaboration. Raíces et Résistance features a world-class Guinean/Cuban ensemble of 25 dancers and 15 musicians with traditional costuming from Cuba and Guinea in a performative conversation as Spanish and Malinké lyrics interweave with Cuban and Guinean rhythms.

Performances are over two weekends, Fridays, October 11 and 18, Saturdays, October 12 and 19 at 8pm and Sundays, October 13 and 20 at 3pm at Dance Mission Theater. For tickets and information, https://bit.ly/raicesetresistance. Discounted early bird tickets are on sale now through August 12.

Embodying the past and the present, "Raíces et Résistance" is a story of Black people defining themselves through dance and music during and after the traumas of slavery and colonization.

"Often stories of African and Caribbean nations are predicated on their relationships to the white western world," explains Sidibe. "This project, while attached to the history of colonization and slavery, looks at independent nations carving out their own identities, Afro-diasporic, immigrant artists collaborating to inspire collectivity and community, and the examination of how people emerge from collective trauma through art."

After French colonization ended in 1958, Guinea elected socialist president Sekou Touré, one of the African continent's prominent independence leaders. Touré aligned closely with Cuba's Fidel Castro, and through this alliance came cultural exchange between the two countries. The dance that emerged incorporated elements of Guinean footwork with popular Salsa dance steps. Artists were invited to festivals by the governments of both countries, and national music groups in Guinea, like Bembeya Jazz, created music with heavy Cuban influence. Raices et Résistance is the final work in Pedroso and Duniya's multi year performance cycle which began in 2022, illuminating Cuba and Guinea's cultural/political relationship.

Pedroso adds, "My work showcases my Afro-Latinidad identity. I am all of these things: Cuban, but also immigrant, Black and Latina. My art elevates Afro-Latinx art to its rightful position of being celebrated for its beauty, wisdom, and deep intelligence. The social issues addressed in my work are the representing/transmitting of traditional knowledge rooted in my ancestors. It's vital that these Afro-Latinx forms are represented as part of the multicultural fabric of the US. As a traditional practitioner, I am part of the movement to let ancient wisdoms speak to us across generations/continents, guiding society to a more equitable future."

ABOUT THE PROJECT's CO-ARTISTIC DIRECTORS

Susana Arenas Pedroso, Artistic Director of Arenas Dance Company, is amongst the world's foremost Cuban folkloric and popular (i.e. social dance) choreographers. Born and raised in Cuba, Pedroso grew up in a family of musicians and santeros - "priests'' in the Afro Diasporic religion, Regla de Ocha (often referred to as Santería), a spiritual practice inextricably linked with Cuban dance/music. Pedroso began her dance career at age twelve, studying at Casa de la Cultura in Matanzas and Conjunto Folklórico Nacional in Havana. Pedroso then danced professionally for 17 years in Cuba with folkloric, popular, and theatrical groups, including the famed Raíces Profundas. Pedroso credits Raíces Profundas' director, Juan de Dios Ramon Morejon for her hard-hitting signature style of movement.

Since moving to the U.S. in 1998, Pedroso has choreographed and performed numerous pieces that have toured nationally and internationally, including being a contributing choreographer for two world tours of Mexico's "Jarocho," a show celebrating Mexico's African roots. Pedroso is known for the way she uses spoken text, humor, and poetry in her dance works. Text is not often used in Cuban folkloric shows, but Pedroso grew comfortable speaking on stage while working with the Cuban performance companies, Oriki and Oche Olorun.

Founded and directed by Susana Arenas Pedroso since 1998, Arenas Dance Company preserves and promotes the rich and diverse Cuban folkloric and popular (i.e. social) dance traditions - from the percussive Arará to the sensual Rumba to the energetic Palo - making it accessible to wide audiences via performances and classes. Arenas Dance Company inspires the hearts and minds of its audiences in the way it brings the history of Cuban dance and musical culture to life.

Arenas Dance Company is a frequent guest artist at events such as the Stanford Jazz Festival, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Black Choreographers Festival, and CubaCaribe Festival. Recent celebrated evening length works include Yo Soy Cuba, Eso Si, and Ada Ara. Arenas Dance Company is a resident artists residency at Dance Mission Theater in San Francisco and teaches Cuban Folkloric and popular dance throughout San Francisco. Raíces et Résistance received the prestigious Hewlett 50 Commission, as well as NEFA / NDP funding, which will make it financially possible to tour nationally.

Bongo Sidibe, Musical and Co-Artistic Director of San Francisco's Duniya Dance & Drum Company, is a musician from Guinea, West Africa and moved to the Bay Area from Guinea in 2008. He studied drumming from master djembe player Mamady Keita beginning at age 9 and is a culture bearer preserving the rich musical traditions of West Africa. Bongo believes in the power of music to unite people and create a more inclusive world.

As the Co-Artistic Director of Duniya Dance and Drum Company, Bongo directs evening-length West African music and dance performances, including "The Madness of the Elephant" about Guinea's first president, Sekou Touré. In addition to being a drummer, Bongo leads the band Bongo Sidibe and the TonTons, which has performed at the Joshua Tree Music Festival, The Chapel SF, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, Laurel Street World Music Festival and more. He has also performed with Joan Baez, Cass McCombs, and the Dogon Lights. In addition to djembe, Bongo plays the dhol from Punjab, India and has composed and performed music for "Half and Halves" about the Punjabi-Mexican communities of California and "Ghadar Geet: Blood and Ink" about the revolutionary Ghadar Party from the early 20th century, which fought for India's independence from Britain.

Bongo is a dedicated arts educator and teaches West African drumming with the SF Ballet, Ruth Asawa SF School of the Arts, LEAP, San Francisco Arts Education, East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, and Destiny Arts Center. He drums for a weekly West African dance class at Dance Mission, and many performances for cultural events. Bongo collaborated with the African Advocacy Network to present the African Arts Festival in 2013, 2016, 2019 and 2022. Bongo has received funding from the California Arts Council, Wattis Foundation, Haas Foundation, the Creative Work Fund and San Francisco Arts Commission to support his work in African communities of the Bay Area. He focuses on providing paid artistic work for many Guinean and Senegalese artists in the Bay Area. Bongo and his wife, Duniya's other Co-Artistic Director Joti Singh, lead a bi-annual trip to Guinea, West Africa and founded the Duniya Center for Arts and Education in Conakry, where Guinean artists learn marketing, computer skills and English.

ARTISTIC COLLABORATORS AND PERFORMER BIOGRAPHIES

ABOUT DANCE MISSION

Dance Mission connects and empowers diverse Bay Area communities and artists through dance and dance theater, including the production of new works, instruction, and performance. Dance Mission is an artist-driven, feminist organization dedicated to building community, exploring issues of social justice and cultural identity, promoting inclusivity and fairness and creating a more peaceful world through collective action inspired by dance. For more information, go to https://dancemissiontheater.org/about/

Dance Mission's Liberation Academy, directed and curated by Sarah Crowell, Kara Mack and Bongo Sidibe, was conceived to restore the intellectual scholarship, spiritual wisdom and creative richness which resides historically in Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color collective oral and underground traditions. The pilot Liberation Academy - or Liberation Academy 1.0 - was held January - June 2022, and Liberation Academy 3.0 begins August 2024. For more information, go to https://dancemissiontheater.org/liberationacademy/

Raíces et Résistance is supported in part by Hewlett 50 Commissioning Award, NEFA / NDP, Dream Keeper Initiative, San Francisco Arts Commission, California Arts Council, NALAC, and the Zellerbach Family Foundation.

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