West African Dance Performance in Los Angeles
The French-Algerian dance group Compagnie Hervé Koubi is scheduled to perform their piece 'Sol Invictus' in Southern California. In addition, a West African Dance performance will take place at 3:30 pm on February 19 at the John Muir Branch Library. These events are highlighted as notable cultural activities in the Los Angeles area.
- The West African dance performance at the John Muir Branch Library is a workshop that will explore the cultural significance of the art form in African society and will include a display of African instruments and artifacts. - Compagnie Hervé Koubi's work, 'Sol Invictus,' features 17 dancers from around the world and is set to a score that includes music by Mikael Karlsson, Maxime Bodson, Steve Reich, and Beethoven. - Choreographer Hervé Koubi was unaware of his family's Algerian roots until he was in his mid-20s; this discovery profoundly influenced his work, leading him to explore his identity and heritage through dance. - Koubi's signature choreographic style is a hybrid that blends contemporary dance with urban and street dance, capoeira, and martial arts, a result of his classical training and his later work with street dancers from North Africa. - The title 'Sol Invictus' is Latin for "invincible sun" and symbolizes a celebration of hope and the bonds that unite people, a theme Koubi intended as an ode to the unifying power of dance. - Hervé Koubi was made a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the French Ministry of Culture in July 2015. - Los Angeles has a history of West African dance performance, with groups like Leon Mobley's Djembe West African Drummers and Dancers performing traditional music and dance from the Mali Empire at local venues like the Getty Museum and the Pan African Film Festival.
