Helmed by Forces of Nature’s executive artistic director and choreographer Abdel R. Salaam, the festive dance celebration will blend traditional West African and neo-African disciplines as well as hip-hop, ballet, contemporary modern dance, and martial arts from across the African diaspora. The performance is meant to be a powerful homage to the ancestors and a vibrant way to honor the holiday with the entire family. To equally showcase local artists, the opening for Forces of Nature is choreographer and dancer Karen Love, founder and artistic director of the Umoja Dance Company and Umoja Dance Studio in Vauxhall, NJ.
Created in 1966 by a California State University African Studies professor, Maulana Karenga, Kwanzaa is an annual holiday that celebrates family, community, and culture through music, dance, poetry, storytelling, and art, with activities organized around the Nguzo Saba (seven principles). The seven-day festival begins Dec 26 and ends Jan 1, with each day dedicated to one of the seven principles defined in Swahili: unity (Umoja), self-determination (Kujichagulia), collective responsibility (Ujima), cooperative economics (Ujamaa), purpose (Nia), creativity (Kuumba), and faith (Imani). The concept of Kwanzaa is rooted in the first fruits or harvest festivals that are found throughout Southern Africa.
Forces of Nature will share the meaning and inspiration behind each of the seven principles of Kwanzaa as they are used worldwide. “Audiences attending the concert will see a program that’s dedicated towards family and community empowerment through the various principles of the Nguzo Saba and how that manifests itself within the work,” says Salaam. He also notes that these principles are not to be practiced just during Kwanza but throughout the year.
“Every day of your life, you need to find something that gives you a better understanding of unity within yourself and the people around you. Every day of your life, you need to find greater degrees of self-determination to give you the power to move forward and accomplish things that you can will yourself to do,” he explains. “Every day of your life, you need to find ways to work with people around you to build things together by pooling resources and money.” He poses the question: “what is your individual purpose, and what’s your collective purpose?” He adds, “you have to find faith in yourself and others (your fellow man).”
