Although I first had some doubts about the Vuyani performance, it later became my favorite dance out of the four at Fall for Dance. I was afraid that it would be typical African tribal dancing, because I have seen much of that on television and at festivals. However, I was very surprised at the diversity and the outside influences that the choreography also captured; additionally, the dance came with an elegant combination of those influences with still a distinctly African tribal feel. Professor Natov mentioned that the choreography had elements of earth and air in it, which I couldn’t picture at first. After seeing the performance, I understood that concept completely. The balance between strength and smoothness was my favorite part of the Vuyani performance.

One of the dancers was shaking his hand to resemble a snake, matching the music. There were hard, loud beats on drums. It was interesting that a woman played the drugs because I know that it requires a lot of stamina. Elements of air and earth were featured in the performance; earth in the strong stance, air in the exaggerated arm and leg movements. It reminded me of Avatar the Last Airbender, which is a compliment. The white satin costumes really emphasized the “air” element. Sometimes, the dancers grabbed the flaps near their waists and waved them around. There is hardly anything subtle in the choreography. A lot of it was large, exaggerated movements that still flowed very well. Only very rarely were movements subtle, such as quick footwork or small stomps. In the first song, the first half was performed as a group/collaborative. The second half was mostly solo with dancers in the background bopping their knees and popping their bodies. One of my favorite aspects of the dance was the powerful “POP” in their bodies, which sometimes even resembled heartbeats along with the music. At the end of the performance, the lead dancer moved very quickly and violently (yet also with distinct organization and structure) to the ferocious music. I was actually scared that the dancer might accidentally pop a joint. The first song reminded me of a jungle, more traditional and tribal. The second song was a love story that started out timidly but then bloomed wildly and flourished. The man and woman were always in sync. The woman did more leaps, the man supported her; maybe it represents the family roles. I liked how all the dancers had almost identical physical appearances. It made me focus less on the gender and more on the cultural aspects of the dance. Some choreography reminded me of kung fu and traditional Chinese dances. The dancers mostly had non-expressive faces, but were sometimes smiling. The instruments included African drums, maracas, and a coffee bean shaker. I also LOVED the voices that sounded like calls and was in an African language!