CORE PROGRAMS
The Digital Jeli is a digital collection of dance, drumming, and songs from the African diasporic dance community. This archive will enrich not only the lives of Detroiters but be a repository and resource for African dance worldwide.
Rule of Three is a programmatic approach that presents practical and theoretical concepts in threes; omne trium perfectum. It is said that ideas presented in threes are inherently more interesting, more enjoyable, and more satisfying. Whether, three lectures, master teachers, genres, or productions it encourages audiences to leave inhibitions and to tap into curiosity.
The Convening for Black Dance and Culture is a biennial event that marries scholarship, movement, and performance to create a conduit experience for participants to learn through, engage and connect with the wider dance community. It is the African Dance conference re-imagined.
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PEER TO PEER INITIATIVES AND ARTIST ENGAGEMENTS
TéMaTé Community Ensemble
The TéMaTé Community Ensemble is an evolution of TéMaTé Institute’s weekly community class which has been going strong since 2018. Our teaching philosophy uplifts the novice and the uninitiated allowing them to grow roots in the African dance tradition. Our dancers come from all walks of life and have different levels of training, and each of them finds joy, meaning, and purpose in the movements of their ancestors.
TeRanGa Arts Collaborative
Teranga, a Wolof word loosely and incompletely translated to ‘hospitality,’ is best understood as a guide to life and a principle to live by. For the Senegalese teranga is the most important value-- more than just how you treat a guest in your home, or on your property, it requires us to give and share of black culture and begs respect for and affirmation of those gifts. TeRanGa Arts Collaborative is a multidisciplinary collaboration between artists who respect and admire African diaspora culture and seek ways to affirm the value of these diverse traditions through innovative and experimental practices.