Sankofa Danzafro

Venue: Vancouver Playhouse

DanceHouse presents Sankofa Danzfro - The City of Others (La Ciudad de los Otros)
Presented with community partners Blackout Arts Society and Vancouver Latin American Cultural Centre

“Dance is a voice in favor of equity. It helped us survive in times of slavery. It was our voice when we were denied the word. It became a narrative, a memory and a hope for the future.” – Rafael Palacios, choreographer.

Created in celebration of Colombia’s 159th Anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery, The City of Others takes apart the country’s history and culture to examine its complex and often agonizing past.

For thousands of people, cities can be a place of hostility, loneliness, and discrimination. Palacios believes that for life to be positive and constructive for collective communities, it is necessary to embrace the extended family concept prevalent in rural communities: what I own is for everyone; under my roof, there is room for someone else.

With the second largest Afro-descent population in Latin America, Colombia’s diasporic communities have suffered discrimination and inequality. In The City of Others, twelve dancers and musicians occupy the stage, laying claim to political and social power, reconstituting the theatrical space as a site of democracy, equality, and wholeness. This is their city – it is everyone’s city.