Yoruba bata dance from Nigeria

by Gloria Ssali

Title

Yoruba bata dance from Nigeria

Artist

Gloria Ssali

Medium

Drawing - Drawing

Description

The Yorubas inhabit the Western part of Nigeria. They are a highly religious people and, as would be expected, this is reflected in their arts and theatre and more prominently, the dances. There are as many variants of dances as there are "orishas" in Yoruba land.: "Ogun", "Sango", "Yemoja", "Osun:, "Esu", "Obatala" etc. are some of the over four hundred and one gods and goddesses in the Yoruba pantheon. These gods have specific rhythms and movements associated with them, according to Oritz, (Jahn:1961,64).
These pantomimic dances, their gestures, steps, costumes and symbols are as carefully planned as ballets. They were created by the Yoruba, an artistic people, said to be the best choreographers in Africa and possessing a highly dramatic mythology, as rich in narrative and as developed as the Greco -Roman. Although the Yorubas are versatile choreographers, most of the characteristics of their dances are also noticeable in most African dances, as dominant movement styles. These characteristics are: tilting of trunk, bent knees, flat foot, earthbound movements, twisting of the waist, isolation of body parts, syncopated movements, acrobatic steps, expressive movements, shaking of the body (buttocks in female), improvisational movements resulting in polyrhythmic movement style (Ugolo:1998).

Uploaded

September 8th, 2011

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