Kenna Sarge has been dancing, studying, teaching and organizing in the Minneapolis area for over 20 years. Her main area of focus is Black Dance, with an emphasis on West African and Hip Hop dance and culture. Kenna has been learning about West African dance from her family and community her entire life. Kenna Sarge started teaching West African dance when she got "the nod" from Youssouf Koumbassa, a master touring artist from Guinea. Kenna currently teaches West African dance around the Twin Cities with various arts in education organizations, and directs Voice of Culture Drum and Dance in Minneapolis.
Journey Into Black Dance
Type: Workshop
Grades: K-12
Fee: See Prices and Policies
Kenna Sarge takes students on a journey through the evolution of the dance of African and African-American people. We begin on the enormous continent of Africa, learning the traditional dances that are the foundation for many of the world's cultures. We experience the drum and the sacred movement of celebration, and the marking of important life milestones. We then travel across the oceans - mirroring the routes traveled during the middle passage and thus we experience the dances and music of the Caribbean and the early days of slavery in the young United States. These arts evolve and develop into jazz and hip-hop, as we finish our journey by exploring the roots of this popular dance form. Hip hop was born on the coast of the nation, and we travel back in time and space to experience locking and break-dance, popping and old school hip-hop. Students will see amazing connections between the modern and the ancient, as they learn the very contemporary movements of the hip hop of the 21st century. Schedule Request
