UC RIVERSIDE Department of Dance

Sponsorship provided by the following UCR departments:

Center for Ideas and Society / African Student Programs

UCR Doundounba Festival 2023
West African Drum and Dance

Join host Makeda Kumasi for the sixth annual free event on West African Drum and Dance as we engage in strength, wellness and community support that is the Doundounba.

May 19-20, 2023

FREE to the public

• Film Festival
• Community Forum
• Drum and Dance Classes
• *Doundounba Challenge w/ $300 Cash Purse

Register in advance for this festival.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the festival. *Competitors must attend the festival classes to enter the challenge.

PARKING
Parking is complimentary to guests who register for this event. Once registration is complete, please use this link to reserve your free parking permit. Note: You must reserve one permit for each day you plan to attend the Doundounba Festival.

Download the poster

EVENT SCHEDULE

Friday, May 19 - INTS 1128 / Zoom Meeting:

Documentary Screenings w/ Q & A 

• 6:10 pm Doors Open / Registration
• 6:30  Film-12 Days in Senegal; An Artist’s Journey Docu-Journal by Makeda Kumasi 
• 7:00 The Sunjata Story - Glimpse of a Mande Epic produced by Marcia Ostashewski, PhD, featuring singer Hawa Kassé Mady Diabaté accompanied on the balafon by Fodé Lassana Diabaté and translated by Professor Chérif Keita
• 7:30 Film- ABATIMBO Drummers from Burundi by Ndere Troupe produced by Andrew Ssebulime
•  7:45  Community Forum w/ David Durosier, Dancer - Ballet National d’Ayiti

       Colette Eloi -PhD candidate - Critical Dance Studies

       Andrew Ssebulime -PhD candidate - Critical Dance Studies

• 9:00 pm Festival Adjourn

Saturday, May 20

ARTS 100 

• 8:30am Registration
• 9:00 - 10:20 Djembe/ Doun Drum Workshop - Mbaye Diouf & Will Gordon
• 10:30 - 11:00  Dance Warm Up - Makeda Kumasi
• 11:00 - 11:45 am Pan African Dance Continuity -Colette Eloi & Andrew Ssebulime PhD candidates - Critical Dance Studies W/ DNCE 5 Showings
• 11:45 - 12:00 pm break
• 12:00pm - 1:30 pm  Master Class - Nikkanni Shawishi

 CHASS Interdisciplinary Building Courtyard

• 1:30 -  2:15 Lunch
• 2:30 - 3:00 Showcase Performances - Featuring Le Ballet Dembaya https://leballetdembaya.com/
• 3:00- 3:45 pm  Community Doundounba with a $300 cash prize purse Challenge from “We The People” CC

Artist bio (Nikkanni Shawishi)

Nikkanni Shawishi -Healing Arts Ambassador

Nikkanni Shawishi is the Founder and Wellness Director of Dunuye -  Fan Wellness, LLC. Immersed in African culture from childhood, as a young adult Nikkanni started a deep study of West African Dance in the cultural mecca of Leimert Park, located in Los Angeles, California under the instruction of Nzinga Camara, one of the founding pioneers of the  African dance and drum community in Los Angeles. Currently she is an ambassador of culture and healing arts in South Florida offering guided healing arts to group homes, detox centers, retirement communities, memory care facilities, youth mentoring programs, summer camps, and corporate events. It is with dance, drum, mindful movements and health education, that she continues to impact the lives of the community. 

Nikkani has intertwined healthcare and healing artistry for over 25 years. A Licensed Practical Nurse by profession, an African Dance Specialist and Vegan Chef by passion, her work continues to be multifaceted and is an integral part of the health and wellness communities throughout South Florida.

Performance Credits: 

World AIDS Day 2000 in Los Angeles, Bob Marley Day Festival in Long Beach Arena, UCLA Jazz and Reggae Festival, 100.3 the Beat Summer JAM (Irvine Meadows), Pan African Film Festival (LosAngeles), Pan African Visions Film Festival (UCLA), House of Blues (Hollywood) accompanying L.A. Reggae Band Boom Shaka, Cal State L.A. Black History Celebration, Cal State Dominguez Cultural Fest, L.A. Southwest College Dance Workshop, The Martin Lawrence Show, "Odysseus' Suite" (John Anson Ford Theatre), Miss African Times Beauty Pageant, Los Angeles Annual African Marketplace, Miami Art Basel, Dance Africa Miami, Boynton Beach Christmas Festival, West Palm Beach County Tourist Development,  Opa Locka Juneteenth Celebration, Broward College International Week, Lululemon Las Vegas

Andrew’s Bio

Andrew Ssebulime is a Ugandan dance scholar and researcher specializing in East African folk dances and drum practices, with a particular emphasis on those originating from Uganda. His extensive knowledge and experience have been honed through years of dedicated scholarship, captivating performances, innovative choreographies, and engaging dance master classes conducted in various countries, including China, England, Norway, France, and now at the University of California, Riverside (UCR).

Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Critical Dance Studies at UCR, Andrew's academic pursuits align with his passion for utilizing dance, particularly folk traditions, as a powerful tool for fostering social cohesion and promoting inclusivity among African diaspora communities. Andrew seeks to create spaces that celebrate and unite people from diverse backgrounds, contributing to the broader discourse on dance and its transformative potential.

Doundounba is a traditional West African rhythm and dance known as the dance of the strong man. It is a dance that showcases the heritage and culture of Africans and African Americans, and the values of strength, agility, vitality, community, communication, creativity, and holistic health. This dance was known to be used as a way to resolve conflict and disagreements in the village or with neighboring tribes in the Great Mali Empire of West Africa. Activities in The Doundounba Festival include film screenings, community discussions with artists and scholars, classes, and a showcase.

This highly significant rhythm and dance has been practiced for many centuries and represents multiple social and cultural values of various ethnic groups in the western region of Africa. The Doundounba is also an event that brings the community together to showcase the artists, and create awareness of its values and tradition. For the individual it represents one's creativity, agility, vitality, and strength. Culturally, it represents a rich heritage filled with pride, identity and power. The inherent West African traditions and values are expressed to the world through its intricate rhythms, song and dance.

About Makeda Kumasi  
Makeda Kumasi is Founder / Artistic Director of The Umoja Ensemble of the Inland Empire (UEIE) and Co-founder of WE 3 PRODUCTIONS. UEIE is a performance group that has been “edutaining ” audiences through an African art aesthetic for over two decades. Makeda has toured with two prominent Southern California based performance companies, Abalaye African Drum and Dance Ensemble, and Niancho Eniyaley African Dance Performers. Makeda holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Southern California, and a Master of Education from the University of Phoenix. She teaches West African movement classes in the community and at the University of California, Riverside. In 2014, she received a Professional Development Grant to study West African Dance in Senegal. From her experience, Makeda has written two books: 12 Days in Senegal; An Artist’s Journey, which is a journal of her sabbatical, I See Hip Hop Afrika, a poetry/picture book, as well as produced a documentary short “12 Days in Senegal; An Artist’s Journey, Docu-Journal”.

GUEST PRESENTERS:

MBaye Diouf

Nikkanni Shawishi

David Durosier

Colette Eloi

Andrew Ssebulime

Will Gordon

Narayana Hall

Luisgnan Bastien 

Saliou M’Boup

Kologbo Kute

JahAmen Mobley

Fatou Ndiaye

Le Ballet Dembaya

Information:dance@ucr.edu 
 

Photo Credit: Archives of Nikkanni Shawishi