Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble - EU Jacksonville 10/11/07

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native americans at fccj

What: Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble
When: October 16th@ 7:30 pm
Where: Wilson Center for the Arts, FCCJ South Campus

      The Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble is set to move audiences here in Jacksonville at the Wilson Center on the 16th. This compelling show does more than just present Native American dances; it takes the viewer through visually compelling piece of dance theatre in the context of Native American dance, music and performance. It’s a narrative with a universal message, communicating the nobility of the human spirit.
      Representing the Plains nations of Lakota, Anishinabe and Comanche, the Southeastern tribe Choctaw and the Woodlands Nations of Ojibwe and Oneida, they offer a rich variety of Native traditions and aesthetics in dance, instrumentals, song, storytelling, sign language and audience interaction.
      Each element in the legendary Return of the Thunders is represented by an instrument in the show. The Return of the Thunders is a story about the cycle of life in the spring, which is a larger metaphor for the awakening of the earth and human consciousness. The drum is the thunder, the flute is the wind, the rattle is the rain and the voice is the lightening. By placing an elemental philosophy behind the instruments, the music imparts greater meaning and force of emotion.
      The show includes, among other things, an “Eagle Dance” complete with a genuine eagle feather costume. Eagle feathers in the U.S. cannot be bought. Only Native Americans and those who are lucky enough to be gifted eagle feathers are allowed to own any.
      There’s also “the Drum Challenge,” which features dueling Native drums. The two drummers trade beats, challenging each other to do more and more complex rhythms. It’s a powerful and exciting portion of the show.
      The show ends with the moving “Hoop Dance,” “a prayer in motion” that Kevin Locke himself refers to as “a choreographic prayer because it is a traditional dance. The symbology of the hoop is the basis of the prayer… Wholeness. Unity. Beauty. Balance. Peace. Continuity. All of these concepts are invoked by the symbol of the hoop…The intended result of the prayer is that all present would receive blessings and be restored to wholeness, balance peace. Not just physically, but emotionally, and of course, spiritually.”
      Twenty-eight hoops are used in this complex dance. Even the color of the hoops has some significance. Black, red, yellow and white are the traditional colors used in native flags and each represents an element, but the four colors also serve to symbolize the major races. It’s the big finale that invokes the show’s universal message and philosophy of unity and cooperation.
      The Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble will perform at the Wilson Center for the Arts on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $33.00 including service charge. Tickets are available by phone with a credit card, via the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville at 1-888-860-BWAY.) Discounts are available for groups of 15 or more by calling (904)632-3228. Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the FCCJ Artist Series’ website, artistseries.fccj.org.

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