Step Afrika!

{{Short description|South African-American dance company}} right|330x75px|Official logo of Step Afrika! [[File:Step Afrika in Israel (26836403632).jpg|thumb|300px|Step Afrika! during a visit in Israel, April 2016]] '''Step Afrika!''' is a dance company dedicated to the African-American tradition of "stepping".<ref>[http://www.weta.org/local/black-history-month/resources WETA Black History Month Resources]</ref> It is a non-profit organization that tours nationally and internationally, presents residencies and workshops worldwide, and uses "stepping" as an educational tool.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1524911 Norris, Michele (28 Nov 2003). "All Things Considered". National Public Radio.]</ref> Their dance style is a fusion of South African gumboot dance and African American stepping.<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-oct-20-me-39362-story.html Peabody, Zanto (20 Oct 2000). "Greek Week Steps Up to Challenge". Los Angeles Times.]</ref>

==History== Step Afrika! was founded in 1994 in South Africa through a collaboration between dancers from the United States and dancers from the Soweto Dance Theatre of Johannesburg, South Africa.<ref>Jenkins, Marilyn (20 December 1994). “Stepping to Soweto”. The Citizen (Johannesburg).</ref><ref>Ulen, Eisa Nefertari (June 1997). “Bringin' It Home”. The Source. pp. 87.</ref><ref>Fine, Elizabeth C (2003). "Soulstepping: African American Step Shows". Chicago: University of Illinois Press. pp. 117. {{ISBN|0-252-02475-3}}.</ref> The company moved to the United States in 1996, and relocated to its current headquarters, in the Atlas Performing Arts Center, on H Street NE, in 2006.

Since 2006, Step Afrika! has produced a Home Performance Series (HPS), and in 2011 the Company designed a HPS themed along the lines of Jacob Lawrence's Migration Series.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater-dance/step-afrika-dance-inspired-by-phillips-collections-migration-series/2011/05/26/AGyGdNIH_story.html Brown, DeNeen (3 June 2011). "Step Afrika Dance Inspired by Phillips Collection Migration Series". Washington Post.]</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{commons category|Step Afrika!}} *{{official website|http://www.stepafrika.org}}

Category:Dance companies in the United States Category:African-American dance Category:South African dancers Category:Dance in Washington, D.C. Category:Performing groups established in 1994 Category:2006 in Washington, D.C. Category:Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C.