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Bald dancer in feather skirt bowing down.

Repertory

Awassa Astrige-Ostrich

COMPANIES

CHOREOGRAPHER

COMPANY PREMIERE

David H. Koch Theater, 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

1932

RECREATION

Charles Moore

RESTAGING

Ella Thompson-Moore

MUSIC

Ron McBee & Carl Riley

COSTUMES

Catti (recreated by Jon Taylor)

LIGHTING

Craig Miller (recreated by Al Crawford)

With arms flapping like wings, torso rippling, and head held high, a warrior is transformed into the proud, powerful ostrich­—the king of birds. Sierra Leone–born choreographer Asadata Dafora blended his vision of a traditional African dance with Western staging in this groundbreaking 1932 solo set to Carl Riley’s score of African drumming and flute. 

Bald dancer with feather skirt.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Yannick Lebrun in Asadata Dafora's Awassa Astrige-Ostrich Photo by Paul Kolnik

Jumping dancer with feathers around their waist.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Yannick Lebrun in Asadata Dafora's Awassa Astrige-Ostrich Photo by Paul Kolnik

After the audience buzz died down and the lights dimmed, you heard the slow beat of an African drum for Asadata Dafora’s Awassa Astrige/Ostrich (1932)—and you’re transported halfway round the world…with his undulating arms, thrusting chest, and proud head, [he] took us to an African grassland. Totally satisfying.

Dance Magazine

With each step, his supple spine curved forward by a foot, mimicking a bird’s serpentine neck. When he squatted down in a deep, second-position plie, going up on his toes and holding the pose for 10 thigh-burning seconds, the crowd went crazy.

The Washington Post