Francophonie! Afro-contemporary dance performance

Be moved by the Dow Dance Company as they communicate captivity and honor their ancestors who were deported from Benin. Their duo’s work pushes the decolonization of the black body and represents the connections between French-speaking West Africa and New Orleans. After the performance, the artists will be available for a Q&A session.

Location: 1519 Jackson Avenue
Duration: 1 hour performance
30 minute Q&A

This work deals with mature topics and language. Viewer Discretion Advised. 

From the DowDance Company: 

"Hommage au Negre" is an immersive performance experience that investigates the similarities and differences in the African and African American experiences. Originally created in 2022 in Benin Republic, "Hommage Au Negre"  catapults audiences into a world beyond enslavement where cultural identity for both African and African Americans are continuously shifting. This dance performance dares to comment on the languages and relationships between traditional values, transformed within the American context, that challenges what it means to be defined as African.

Hommage au Negre is a title intentionally chosen to bring forward uncomfortable  topics surrounding identity, racism, and colonization. The work is based on the lived experiences of the artists as African descendants. It is grounded in research on the etymology of the word  within historical and social contexts. The artists are aware of the trauma that is associated with the word, however, through sharing their own stories that step outside of clichés and into their own trauma, it is their hope that dialogue occurs with an open audience that is ready and willing to learn. 

Choreographed and performed by : Caleb Dowden (United States) and Arouna Guindo (Benin Republic)
Music by: HighHealDoula (United States) and Giovanni Dehoue (Benin Republic)

The duo, composed of Arouna Guindo and Caleb Dowden, is based in New Orleans. Arounda Guindo is a dancer and choreographer from Benin. Caleb Dowden, born in New Orleans, has been working for years in West Africa where she found her inspiration for the choreographies performed by her artistic company Dow-Dance.