Tickets are available by calling the Atlas Performing Arts Center box office (202-399-7993, press 2) or at www.stepafrika.com . Ticket prices range from $20-$48.50.
When the two-act percussive dance performance premieres next month, it will mark the culmination of a cross-continent collaboration that brings classical music and stepping together on a single stage. It will also feature the results of the dance company’s exploration into the history of George Bridgetower, an Afro-Polish child prodigy and violin virtuoso.
The first act of Symphony in Step will feature music inspired by Bridgetower and his contemporaries Franz Joseph Haydn and Beethoven performed on piano, violin and drum and interpreted by STEP AFRIKA! After a brief intermission, the second act will feature 15-piece chamber orchestra assembled especially for this project with professional musicians from across the D.C. area and graduate students from Catholic University’s Classical Music program.
STEP AFRIKA! is the first professional company in the world dedicated to the tradition of stepping. Founded in 1994 by current Executive Director, C. Brian Williams, STEP AFRIKA! began as cross-cultural exchange program with the Soweto Dance Theatre of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Today, STEP AFRIKA! is celebrated worldwide for its efforts to promote an appreciation for stepping and the dance tradition’s use as an educational tool for young people. The company reaches tens of thousands each year and has performed on stages in North & South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Recent 2013 international performances include appearances in Spain, Italy, Paraguay, Montenegro, Croatia and Latvia.
Based in Washington, DC, Step Afrika! is DC’s first and only Cultural Ambassador representing the city and nation at events around the world. The company completes an annual 50-city tour of colleges and theaters from Maine to Mississippi and is a national model for the use of stepping in education, espousing themes such as teamwork, academic achievement and cross-cultural understanding. Step Afrika! is a frequent partner of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Washington Performing Arts Society and has graced some of America’s most prestigious stages from the White House to the Lincoln Center in New York City.
