Step Afrika! The Migration Program Book by Lied Center for Performing Arts

THE MIGRATION REFLECTIONS

ON JACOB LAWRENCE

THU, OCT 3, 2024

7:30 PM

2024 THE MIGRATION PROGRAM

ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM

C. Brian Williams, Founder & Executive Producer

Lamar Lovelace, Executive Director

Artis Olds, Director, Arts Education and Community Programs

Margo Cunningham, Marketing Manager

Pascha Barnwell, Company Manager

ARTISTIC TEAM

Mfoniso Akpan, Artistic Director

Jakari Sherman, Director, The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence and Projection Designer

Conrad R. Kelly II, Assistant Artistic Director

Marianne Meadows*, Lighting Designer, Production Manager, and Stage Manager

Trevion Walker, Assistant Stage Manager

Harlen Penn, Original Scenic Design

Kenann Quander, Original Costume Design

Patrick Calhoun, Original Sound Design

*Member of the United Scenic Artists Local USA 829

CAST

Kenneth L. Alexander

JaVonn Bright

Nya Christian

Ariel Dykes

Agyei Keita-Edwards

Keomi Givens Jr.

Kamala Hargrove

Lionel D. Lyles II

Briona Jackson

Terrence Johnson

Conrad Kelly II

Abdou Muhammed

Isaiah O’Connor

Valencia Springer

Ericka Still

Jantanies Thomas

Brie Turner

Pelham Warner Jr.

Robert Warnsley

Learn more about Step Afrika! Share your experience! #StepAfrika www.stepafrika.org

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Step Afrika!’s signature work The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence charts the story of African Americans moving from the rural South to the industrial North to escape Jim Crow, racial oppression, and lynchings in the early 1900s. Inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s iconic 60-panel “The Migration Series” (1940-41), this signature work from the award-winning dance company uses the images, color palette, and motifs in the painting series to tell this astonishing story through pulsating rhythms and visually stunning movement.

PROGRAM

“Must we remain in the South or go elsewhere? Where can we go to feel that security which other people feel?” - A Colored Woman in Alabama, 1902

DRUM CALL

Choreographed/Composed by Jakari Sherman and W.E. Smith

Original Recording of “African Villages” by W.E. Smith

The drum has always been essential to African culture everywhere and is critical to the rhythm of Migration. Drum Call depicts an African village, the arrival of foreign ships, and the ensuing turmoil.

GO WEST: circa 1890

Choreographed by Makeda Abraham, Mfoniso Akpan and Delaunce Jackson

Drumming by Abdou Muhammed, Agyei Keita-Edwards, and Conrad Kelly II

Flute by Lionel B Lyles II

When Africans arrived in America, their music and dance traditions were ingrained in the culture. Go West explores how West African dance and drum traditions spread and maintained their vitality in the New World.

DRUMFOLK

Choreographed by David Pleasant

Flute by Lionel B Lyles II

Drumfolk is a celebration of the early development of African American percussive traditions including patting juba, hambone, and ring shout – giving way to art forms like tap dance and stepping. While exploring this heritage, Drumfolk reflects on the harsh conditions in the South that coincided with the practice of these transcendent musical forms. The work shows how the progression of such hardships preempted escape and migration, and how the fortitude of the enslaved led to the creation of new traditions like spirituals, field hollers and shouts.

WADE SUITE

Choreographed by Kirsten Ledford, LeeAnet Noble and Paul Woodruff Vocals by JaVonn Bright, Ariel Dykes, Briona Jackson, and Jantanies Thomas Vocal Arrangement by Greg Watkins

Wade shows the continuity in African and African-American percussive dance traditions by blending the South African Gumboot Dance, tap and stepping with the African-American spiritual.

Movement One: THE DEACON’S DANCE

The African American spiritual played a significant role in lifting the spirit in troubled times. In The Deacon’s Dance, two deacons prepare for Sunday services.

Movement Two: WADE

After the abolition of slavery, the church remained a center of refuge and community-building amidst the harsh conditions and served as a primary means of communication for industries recruiting labor during World War I. Wade highlights the importance of the church in helping African Americans survive the South, and its critical role in helping vulnerable people resettle in the North.

INTERMISSION

“I was leaving the South to fling myself into the unknown. I was taking a part of the South to transplant in alien soil, to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns, and, perhaps, to bloom.” - Richard Wright

TRANE SUITE

Original Recording of “Trane” by W. E. Smith

Saxophone by Lionel B. Lyles II

Throughout the Great Migration, the train was an important means of transporting people to the North. The entire railroad industry recruited heavily in the South and thus, economically, became a primary means of African American’s “one-way ticket” to a new life. Named in reference to John Coltrane and paying homage to Duke Ellington’s Take the A Train , Trane is a journey in three parts, following the story of the Great Migration.

Movement One: TRANE

Choreographed by Jakari Sherman

Creation of Trane made possible by the DC Jazz Festival.

The opening movement, Trane , establishes the connection between past and present: the rhythm of the train north; Ellington’s classic score; and the Alpha “train,” a time-honored element of stepping practiced by brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Movement Two: OFF THE TRAIN

Choreographed by Jakari Sherman

Three men arrive in the North, luggage in hand…thrilled about the possibilities.

Movement Three: MY MAN’S GONE NOW

Choreographed by Mfoniso Akpan, Aseelah Allen, Dionne Eleby, Kevin Marr and Jakari Sherman

Recording of “My Man’s Gone Now” by Nina Simone

During the migration, it was common for men to journey north without their wives or children because of the high cost of travel. This left many women at home in the South caring for children and struggling to find work. My Man’s Gone Now is the story of three women, each in a different phase of their transition to the North and ready to be reunited with their loved one.

CHICAGO

Choreographed by Jakari Sherman

Between the 1910s and 1920, more than 400,000 African Americans left the South for many Northern and Western cities, including Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Chicago. By the end of the 1920s, that number exceeded 1.2 million.

Chicago finds the people new rhythm in everyday situations. It is a percussive symphony using body percussion and vocals to highlight the collective self-transformation of these brave men and women once they arrived “Up North.”

THE STORY OF STEP AFRIKA!

Founded in 1994 by C. Brian Williams, Step Afrika! is the world’s leading authority on the artform of stepping. Under Mr. Williams’ leadership, stepping has evolved into one of America’s cultural exports, touring more than 60 countries across the globe and ranking as one of the top 10 African American Dance Companies in the US.

Step Afrika! blends percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities; traditional African dances; and an array of contemporary dance and art forms into a cohesive, compelling artistic experience. Performances are much more than dance shows; they integrate songs, storytelling, humor and audience participation. The blend of technique, agility, and pure energy makes each performance unique and leaves the audience with their hearts pounding.

Step Afrika! promotes stepping as an educational tool for young people, focusing on teamwork, academic achievement and cross-cultural understanding. The Company reaches tens of thousands of Americans each year through a 50-city tour of colleges and theaters and performs globally as Washington, DC’s one and only Cultural Ambassador.

Step Afrika! has earned Mayor’s Arts Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Arts Education, Innovation in the Arts, Excellence in an Artistic Discipline, and was inducted into the National Association of Campus Activities (NACA) Hall of Fame, the first Dance Company to earn this honor.

Step Afrika! headlined President Barack Obama’s Black History Month Reception and performed at the first ever Juneteenth Celebration at the White House. The Company is featured prominently at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History & Culture with the world’s first stepping interactive exhibit.

PREETA D. BANSAL

So many of the most meaningful moments of awareness and transformation in my life have taken place through the arts – whether gazing at the Pieta in the Vatican, or the Matisse chapel in St. Paul de Vence, or viewing early iterations of creative works that would go on to become celebrated theater productions. In a time of rising divisiveness, the beauty of the arts is that they connect us at the level of heart and spirit, rather than trying to work through mind and thought. They show (not tell), and gently guide us to our common humanity. It’s not surprising that throughout history, artists have been cultural ‘shamans’ or canaries in the coal mines – early seers of the brightest and darkest aspects of our humanity. The Lied Center is such a vibrant contributor to our community. We’re so lucky that Lincoln, with its manageable size, has become such a ‘go-to’ stop for some of the nation’s most exciting artists.

PRISCILLA C. GREW

It has been an honor for me to be a member of the Lied Center MOSAIC Circle since 2019. MOSAIC programming celebrates artistry, self-expression, curiosity and reflection. Lied MOSAIC brings performers to Nebraska who otherwise would remain unknown to us. Beginning with our first childhood visit to a live performance, lifelong learning through the arts helps us empathize with others and learn about life experiences far different from those we will ever have ourselves.

The MOSAIC Series supports the University of Nebraska’s efforts to achieve diversity, equity and inclusion in our statewide educational outreach. The MOSAIC performances and accompanying outreach programming for children, youth, students and the community will help us build future Lied audiences and ensure that our treasured Lied Center is a venue where all people feel welcomed, respected, and valued as they experience the arts.

ART AND CHRIS ZYGIELBAUM:

Art and Chris Zygielbaum enjoy and take pride in supporting the arts in Lincoln. They both grew up in families where music and the arts enriched their lives. The Zygielbaums recognize that in a world that seems so divided by culture, politics, and religion, we must not forget those things we all hold precious in common. The arts, whether a music performance, a play, or a comedian, reminds us that we are all touched by a good story, stirred by a well-performed score or song, and made to laugh by a clever twist of words. Those are things shared no matter our background. That is the substance of the MOSAIC Circle. We bask in the richness of cultures other than our own. Art’s parents were holocaust survivors. Because their culture was misunderstood, denigrated, and painted inferior, their lives were indelibly damaged. It is Art and Chris’ fervent hope that programs created through the MOSAIC Circle will help people understand and appreciate other people. They believe the arts can help us avoid the distrust and misunderstanding that underpins tragedies like the holocaust. And both of them are very proud of the Lied Center for Performing Arts, the joy and insight it brings to them, and the incredible value it provides to our community.

DEE AND JOHN CUMMINS

We are pleased to help support the Lied’s dance program through the Dance Circle. Our season ticket order always includes dance performances. Each new season announcement is like opening a gift that surprises and delights. How much fun was it to see the unique and entertaining “Alice” this past year? What a joy it is to watch dance performances! It is always amazing to see the strength, agility and emotions of the dancers showcased in intricate choreography. We are very fortunate to have the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of dance genres through the Lied. Additionally, the dance program helps get and keep students dancing through educational opportunities for students of all ages. For those of us who have no rhythm or who have retired our dancing shoes, this is the answer!

PRISCILLA C. GREW

In addition to the joy of watching dance during performances, I support dance at the Lied so that Nebraska students can experience outstanding professional choreography and see national artists dancing live on campus. By promoting dance, we also help provide opportunities for students in UNL’s Glenn Korff School of Music to attend master classes and workshops led by artists from the leading dance companies and the casts of shows performing at the Lied. The Dance Circle also enriches the educational outreach of the Lied so students from local schools and dance academies can experience both the beauty of classical ballet and the amazingly diverse dance world of today. And what I especially love about dance events at the Lied is watching the littlest dancers in the audience trying out new steps in the aisles as they leave a performance.

KAREN MORGAN

As a child I never saw the wonders of dance movement live. Through the Dance Circle I have the opportunity to support the talents of professional dancers and make available both Masters classes and outreach learning to an audience who may be in a similar situation. I am fascinated with all forms of dance and hope to make available live experiences to others who may never had the opportunity to see the talents of professional dancers from ballet to modern including jazz, tap or hip hop.

KATHERINE F. STARACE

I am pleased to join the Lied Center’s Dance Circle. I have so enjoyed the dance performances over the past few years- at the Lied and also in Pioneers Park and am looking forward to the performances for the 24-25 season. I appreciate the Lied Center’s commitment to providing opportunities to the community to meet and learn from the visiting performers.

STEVE WAKE

The Lied Center for the Performing Arts is a wonderful asset for the cultural environment of Lincoln, Nebraska and the surrounding area. I have enjoyed attending events at the Lied for many years and I am looking forward to participating as a member of the Lied’s Dance Circle. I have always enjoyed the visual arts and dance provides a unique combination of musical and visual entertainment. I look forward to the coming seasons of the amazingly varied performances at the Lied.

CORPORATE SPONSOR STORY

Assurity is a mutual insurance organization founded more than 130 years ago on the simple concept of people coming together to support each other in moments of need. We offer a wide range of insurance products designed to protect and support families. Assurity is rooted in our mission to help people through difficult times and is characterized by stability, longevity, and commitment to the greater good.

In 2024, Assurity was again recognized as one of Lincoln’s Best Places to Work. We are powered by an exceptionally engaged group of associates who are grounded in our values, inspired by our mission, and eager to serve.

As a Certified B Corporation, Assurity has achieved rigorous standards of sustainability and community responsibility. We believe in using our business as a force for good. Our support of the world-class cultural events presented by the Lied Center for Performing Arts stands as an example of that commitment, as they bring a rich diversity of shared experiences to our city.