KEKENE XIX WEEKEND | 19th Annual Ivorian Cultural Celebration Workshops

The Gathering Returns with KEKENE XIX WEEKEND, the 19th Annual celebration highlighting the performance traditions and cultural contributions of Ivory Coast. We continue our weekend-long festivities with the Kekene XIX Cultural Celebration Workshops on Sunday, October 25 at 2p-6:30pm in Lower Manhattan.

Kekene XIX Weekend Workshops will feature world-renown and locally active teachers and experts of West African Dance and Drum for an afternoon of cultural immersion to engage the body, uplift the mind and affirm the spirit.

KEKENE XIX DANCE WORKSHOP SCHEDULE

• 2:00pm Persephone DaCosta | West African Dance
• 3:30pm Mouminatou Camara AND Maguette Camara | Djembe Dance
• 5:00pm Yahaya Kamate AND Fanzy Monguey | Ivorian Dance

KEKENE XIX DRUM WORKSHOP SCHEDULE

• 2:00pm Vado Diomande | Ivorian Performance Rhythms
• 3:30pm Tra Bi Lizie | Ivorian Village Rhythms
• 5:00pm Joe Barnes | Diasporic West African Rhythms

ABOUT VADO DIOMANDE

Creator, KEKENE | Founder & Artistic Director, KOTCHEGNA DANCE COMPANY

, founder and artistic director of Kotchegna Dance Company, hails from Toufinga, a small village in Ivory Coast, West Africa. The son of a farmer and youngest of ten siblings, Vado began demonstrating a proficiency for the dance and drum traditions of his native Mahouka people at the age of 4. His prodigious skill eventually led him to the Ballet National de Cote d’Ivoire, where he performed as a principal dancer for more than fifteen years, touring extensively throughout Africa, Asia, Europe and Australia. In 1989, Vado founded L’Ensemble Kokiegna in Abidjan, Ivory Coast with which he continued touring internationally. In 1994, L’Ensemble Kokiegna became Kotchegna Dance Company, establishing New York City as the new home for Vado and the troupe.

ABOUT KOTCHEGNA | /koh-chain-yah/

Founded in 1989, (KDC) is a multi-ethnic dance corps based in New York City specializing in the dance and drum traditions of Cote D’Ivoire, West Africa. Meaning Messenger in Mahou, a dialect of the Ivory Coast and the native language of the company director, Vado Diomande, Kotchegna seeks to impart the village traditions of over 60 different ethnic groups comprising the country through performance and teaching. Featuring dances and rhythms choreographed and arranged by Vado, formerly a principal dancer with the Ballet National de Cote D'Ivoire, the rich diversity of West African culture and Ivory Coast are amplified and available to all.

Event venue & nearby stays

Gibney 280 Broadway Building, 53A Chambers Street, New York, United States

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