The Alloy School, West African: Dance & Drum
KST Presents
with Ebony Castaphney
Saturdays, July 16, 23, 30, August 6
12:00pm – 12:50pm
All ages
KST’s Alloy Studios | 5530 Penn Ave.
$10/class for full session; $12.50/drop-in
Bring your loved ones to experience the fundamentals of traditional West African dance and rhythm. Classes involve grounding full body movements accompanied by percussive rhythms, drumming, and the occasional vocal song. This intergenerational class offers invigorating adaptive exercise for all people.
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Ebony Castaphney also known as Ms. Ebony Naima Zan is native to Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. She uses art such as movement, poetry, storytelling, and vocal expression as forms of wellness. For the last decade Ebony has studied a variety of diaspora arts, gravitating more towards the deep rooted traditional dances of Guinea West Africa. She developed a strong passion to preserve black cultural arts as well as black history in America. With the purpose of building black pride amongst people of color and honoring their legacies. Ebony continues to move with purpose sharing her passion, knowledge and love for the arts with the youth of the Nia Dance Ensemble. The ensemble is a project that she began 3 years ago with the hopes of helping at-risk youth develop a sense of purpose, passion and confidence amongst others. Ebony and Nia Dance Ensemble perform locally with aspirations of uplifting, inspiring and healing their community through the engagement of song, movement and the melodic rhythms of Africa.
AND DON’T MISS…
Orientation
For Participants & Caretakers
Saturday, July 9
10:00am
KST’s Alloy Studios | 5530 Penn Ave.
FREE
Interested in registering for classes or already registered? KST has a one-hour orientation for families at KST’s Alloy Studios. Meet The Alloy School Education Coordinator, Simon Phillips, and hear from our Teaching Artists, each of whom will present their style and share what participants will learn over the course of the session.
The Alloy School Showcase
Let’s Move Family Dance Party
Saturday, August 13
10:00am
Kelly Strayhorn Theater | 5941 Penn Ave.
Pay What Moves You: $5–20
Celebrate The Alloy School journey with our Showcase and Let’s Move Family Dance Party on at Kelly Strayhorn Theater. Each class will present material from their class session on the mainstage, after which we move to the lobby for family beats and community crafts.
The Alloy School is made possible with support from the Arts Equity Reimagined Collective Action for Re-Imagining Vibrancy Fund grant, a funding initiative managed by New Sun Rising; the Henry C. Frick Educational Fund of the Buhl Foundation, The Grable Foundation, and the McElhattan Foundation. Kelly Strayhorn Theater is supported in part by the taxpayers of Allegheny County through a public grant from the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD). RAD works here. The Alloy School is relaunched in collaboration with PearlArts as part of the PearlArts @ KST Mutual-Aid Residency.
