Afro-Cuban Experimental Dance Ensemble
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Oyu Oro is the brainchild of Danys "La Mora" Perez ─ international Afro-Cuban folklore
performer, choreographer, teacher and dance ethnologist from Santiago de Cuba. The
company is committed to the preservation of Afro-Cuban folklore as well as to
encouraging the cross-cultural understanding of the dance and music forms derived
from African culture. While Oyu Oro’s traditional repertoire pays tribute to African
lineages derived from the Yoruba, Congo, Carabali, Arará and Dahomean cultures of
West Africa and Haiti, the popular dance choreographies also celebrate the national
Cuban heritage.
In February 2007, Oyu Oro presented the world premiere of "Palenque," an epic poem
in Afro-Cuban folklore and the company's first evening length work, at La Mama Annex
Stage. La Mora assembled a gathering of seasoned Afro-Cuban artists in America,
including 20-plus New York-based dancers, vocalists and musicians. This
unprecedented two-week event was greeted with rave reviews and sold-out audiences.
Since then, Oyu Oro has premiered number of presentations, which include "Fiesta
Cubana" during the Chase Latino Cultural Festival at Queens Theatre in July 2011,
Jacob's Pillow Inside/Out stage in July 2011, New Orleans Dance Festival in July 2011,
"Identidad" during the Seventh Annual CubaCaribe Dance and Music Festival in San
Francisco in May 2011, Flint Hills International Children's Festival at the Ordway
Theater in Minnesota in June 2011, "El Poder de Mi Folklore" during the WOFABE
African Dance and Drum Festival at NJ Symphony Hall in November 2010, "Fusion Afro
Caribe"during the World City Series at Music Center of Los Angeles in October 2010,
"Fusion Caribena" during the Houston International Festival in April 2010, "Tributo"
during Heritage Sunday at the Lincoln Center Out of Doors in August 2009,"
Ceremonial de la Danza" during the Chase Latino Cultural Festival at Queens Theatre
in July 2009, "Maferefun" at Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School in November
2008, "Raices y Estampas Cubanas" at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center In Queens
in October 2008 and "Cubaila" during the Fourth Annual CubaCaribe Dance and Music
Festival in San Francisco in April 2008. Since 2009, Oyu Oro has been one of the key
members of the artist rosters represented by the Center for Traditional Music and
Dance.
Oyu Oro aspires to create a work that will serve as an informational tool for the
researchers in the academic field as well as a source of enjoyment for audiences of
all ages and multicultural backgrounds who seek a greater development of "art among
people.”
performer, choreographer, teacher and dance ethnologist from Santiago de Cuba. The
company is committed to the preservation of Afro-Cuban folklore as well as to
encouraging the cross-cultural understanding of the dance and music forms derived
from African culture. While Oyu Oro’s traditional repertoire pays tribute to African
lineages derived from the Yoruba, Congo, Carabali, Arará and Dahomean cultures of
West Africa and Haiti, the popular dance choreographies also celebrate the national
Cuban heritage.
In February 2007, Oyu Oro presented the world premiere of "Palenque," an epic poem
in Afro-Cuban folklore and the company's first evening length work, at La Mama Annex
Stage. La Mora assembled a gathering of seasoned Afro-Cuban artists in America,
including 20-plus New York-based dancers, vocalists and musicians. This
unprecedented two-week event was greeted with rave reviews and sold-out audiences.
Since then, Oyu Oro has premiered number of presentations, which include "Fiesta
Cubana" during the Chase Latino Cultural Festival at Queens Theatre in July 2011,
Jacob's Pillow Inside/Out stage in July 2011, New Orleans Dance Festival in July 2011,
"Identidad" during the Seventh Annual CubaCaribe Dance and Music Festival in San
Francisco in May 2011, Flint Hills International Children's Festival at the Ordway
Theater in Minnesota in June 2011, "El Poder de Mi Folklore" during the WOFABE
African Dance and Drum Festival at NJ Symphony Hall in November 2010, "Fusion Afro
Caribe"during the World City Series at Music Center of Los Angeles in October 2010,
"Fusion Caribena" during the Houston International Festival in April 2010, "Tributo"
during Heritage Sunday at the Lincoln Center Out of Doors in August 2009,"
Ceremonial de la Danza" during the Chase Latino Cultural Festival at Queens Theatre
in July 2009, "Maferefun" at Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School in November
2008, "Raices y Estampas Cubanas" at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center In Queens
in October 2008 and "Cubaila" during the Fourth Annual CubaCaribe Dance and Music
Festival in San Francisco in April 2008. Since 2009, Oyu Oro has been one of the key
members of the artist rosters represented by the Center for Traditional Music and
Dance.
Oyu Oro aspires to create a work that will serve as an informational tool for the
researchers in the academic field as well as a source of enjoyment for audiences of
all ages and multicultural backgrounds who seek a greater development of "art among
people.”
AFRO-CUBAN VODU & YANVALU: Dances of Afro-Haitian origins that were introduced to Cuba at the end of the 18th century by immigrating Haitian
Blacks who settled in eastern Cuba, primarily in Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. Its musical instrument and rhythms are derived from the
ceremonies of Dahomeyan people. The Patois songs retain their Haitian character and are unchanged from their original form.
AFRO-CUBAN YORUBA (ORISHA): Dances of Nigerian origin, which were introduced to Cuba during the slave trade in the Western part of island,
specifically in Habana and Matanzas. Orisha dances are religious manifestations of The Regla de Ocha (Cuban Santeria) and is traditionally performed
with Bata drums.
CONGO: Dances of Congo origin, which were introduced to Cuba during the slave trade in the Western part of the island. Congos, known as Paleros or
Mayomberos in Cuba, is one of the African ethnic groups that left a strong footprint in the Cuban cultural landscape. The dance and music expresses
three important factors: the power of their spirits and the communication with their ancestors manifested through their object for worshiping called
Ganga; the competition of their leaders named Tata in their efforts to show the supremacy of their magic religious power; and the physical abilities
through the dance with the secret of forest using a stick called Garabato.
TUMBA FRANCESA: Dances of Afro-Haitian origin that were introduced to Cuba at the end of the 18th century by free Haitian black immigrants &
French colonizers with their slaves, who settled in eastern Cuba, primarily in Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. While the music retains the original
Haitian characteristics of Patois songs as well as their Dahomeyan rhythms, these dances transform the movements of French couples
at colonial festivities into an African image. The dances - delicate and pure in style - are performed in three sections: the Mason (dance by couple), the
Yuba (dance by trio) and the Frente or Front (a music and dance dialogue between a solo dancer and the premier drum).
TAJONA: Group dances of rural comparsa that were created by Cuban and Haitian descendants. They were practiced in Santiago de Cuba and its
surroundings during the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Beginning with a leisurely paced representation of the country lifestyle, the
dance soon evolves into a more energetic competition between two groups with frenzied rhythms accompanying the gracefully
coordinated intertwining of colorful laces that hang from a tall pole.
BAND GAGA: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dances which were transculturalized in the Haitian settlements in the eastern part of Cuba. They are collective feasts
organized as a comparsa (parade) of rural origin. It contains two basic styles, Chai and Pigue. The ceremonies are performed during the Holy Catholic
week. The Patois songs, percussive music and imaginative, lascivious dancing between men and women lend this style its particularly attractive quality.
It is characterized by rhythm, strength, exotic movement, color and eroticism.
IBO: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dance which was transculturalized in the Haitian settlements of eastern Cuba. It is danced for worshiping one of the
Afro-Haitian deities (Loas) called "Ibo," who are known for their peculiar characteristics in the way he expresses himself and for being extremely
independent. Ibo is identified as Saint Barbara or 'Chango' in Regla de Ocha (Cuban Santeria), and is represented by red and fire.
MASUN: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dance which was transculturalized in the Haitian settlements of eastern Cuba. It is danced during a religious ceremony,
full of celebratory and joyous expressions, but without connecting to a specific religious context. It is characterized by profound pelvic movements that
are provocative and exotic.
CUTARAS OR CHANCLETAS: A dance of the percussive voices of wooden slippers that engages in a dialogue with the drums, which appeared in the
1930s. The music is characterized by the rhythmic tapping of the Cutaras (wooden slippers) on the floor and the sound of the drums, sometimes
guiding and sometimes accompanying. At times the percussion stops and the Cutaras themselves sound their syncopated contrapuntal
variations, reaching a roaring and shattering effect.
CONGA COMPARSA: The most integral, popular, and emblematic elements of the world famous carnivals of Santiago de Cuba can be found in the
beautifully dressed and exciting Congas. The Conga Santiaguera is a mass celebration that speaks of the African origin that is inherent to Cuban
people.
CICLO DE LA RUMBA: Rumba is a manifestation of music and dance born in western Cuba (Havana and Matanzas) and deeply rooted in Cuban
culture. It was created by humble black men living in Solares (tenement buildings) in Cuba, as a way of expressing their social events. While people in
high-society of this era had cherished the foreign culture from Europe, Black people on the street had invented and developed this blend of complex
dance rhythms with deep African roots for their own entertainment, using tools from everyday life as instruments - such as spoons, candle boxes and
chairs. La Rumba has three principal and traditional styles or forms to dance - El Yambu, El Guaganco and Columbia. Presently it constitutes a national
cultural patrimony: "Yambu" is a couple's dance where dancers imitate the movements of their elders; "Guaguanco" is also a couples dance which
emulates the courting/mating act as a competition between a man and woman; and "Columbia" is a competition between the most skillful male
dancers and the principal leading drum.
SON: One of the most basic forms of Afro-Cuban music and dance. Its existence is documented as early as the late 19th century. Son has various
choreographic variations and numerous musical styles. It is danced as a couple, similar to the Danzon, but its movements are more open, accentuated
and free.
BEMBE / Dances for the Orishas: In the Afro-Cuban tradition a Bemb is a ceremonial celebration that invites the Orisha to come.
CANIKELA: Popular dances that come from Angola, they where introduce to Cuba in the 1980's by dancer, musician, ethnologist and Choreographer
Aldo Durales in the eastern part of the island.
MERENGUE / CONGO LAYE/BICHEB: From the French / Haitian popular dances in Cuba. They are secular dances (of lascivious movements) that are
performed in the plantations during the resting time (after hard labor) around the coffee drying areas, between the rows of sugar cane, or in any other
work place . These dances were also danced during festivities and celebrations, dedicated to their Patron Saints, or after ceremonies offered to their
Cult.
Blacks who settled in eastern Cuba, primarily in Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. Its musical instrument and rhythms are derived from the
ceremonies of Dahomeyan people. The Patois songs retain their Haitian character and are unchanged from their original form.
AFRO-CUBAN YORUBA (ORISHA): Dances of Nigerian origin, which were introduced to Cuba during the slave trade in the Western part of island,
specifically in Habana and Matanzas. Orisha dances are religious manifestations of The Regla de Ocha (Cuban Santeria) and is traditionally performed
with Bata drums.
CONGO: Dances of Congo origin, which were introduced to Cuba during the slave trade in the Western part of the island. Congos, known as Paleros or
Mayomberos in Cuba, is one of the African ethnic groups that left a strong footprint in the Cuban cultural landscape. The dance and music expresses
three important factors: the power of their spirits and the communication with their ancestors manifested through their object for worshiping called
Ganga; the competition of their leaders named Tata in their efforts to show the supremacy of their magic religious power; and the physical abilities
through the dance with the secret of forest using a stick called Garabato.
TUMBA FRANCESA: Dances of Afro-Haitian origin that were introduced to Cuba at the end of the 18th century by free Haitian black immigrants &
French colonizers with their slaves, who settled in eastern Cuba, primarily in Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. While the music retains the original
Haitian characteristics of Patois songs as well as their Dahomeyan rhythms, these dances transform the movements of French couples
at colonial festivities into an African image. The dances - delicate and pure in style - are performed in three sections: the Mason (dance by couple), the
Yuba (dance by trio) and the Frente or Front (a music and dance dialogue between a solo dancer and the premier drum).
TAJONA: Group dances of rural comparsa that were created by Cuban and Haitian descendants. They were practiced in Santiago de Cuba and its
surroundings during the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Beginning with a leisurely paced representation of the country lifestyle, the
dance soon evolves into a more energetic competition between two groups with frenzied rhythms accompanying the gracefully
coordinated intertwining of colorful laces that hang from a tall pole.
BAND GAGA: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dances which were transculturalized in the Haitian settlements in the eastern part of Cuba. They are collective feasts
organized as a comparsa (parade) of rural origin. It contains two basic styles, Chai and Pigue. The ceremonies are performed during the Holy Catholic
week. The Patois songs, percussive music and imaginative, lascivious dancing between men and women lend this style its particularly attractive quality.
It is characterized by rhythm, strength, exotic movement, color and eroticism.
IBO: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dance which was transculturalized in the Haitian settlements of eastern Cuba. It is danced for worshiping one of the
Afro-Haitian deities (Loas) called "Ibo," who are known for their peculiar characteristics in the way he expresses himself and for being extremely
independent. Ibo is identified as Saint Barbara or 'Chango' in Regla de Ocha (Cuban Santeria), and is represented by red and fire.
MASUN: Afro-Haitian-Cuban dance which was transculturalized in the Haitian settlements of eastern Cuba. It is danced during a religious ceremony,
full of celebratory and joyous expressions, but without connecting to a specific religious context. It is characterized by profound pelvic movements that
are provocative and exotic.
CUTARAS OR CHANCLETAS: A dance of the percussive voices of wooden slippers that engages in a dialogue with the drums, which appeared in the
1930s. The music is characterized by the rhythmic tapping of the Cutaras (wooden slippers) on the floor and the sound of the drums, sometimes
guiding and sometimes accompanying. At times the percussion stops and the Cutaras themselves sound their syncopated contrapuntal
variations, reaching a roaring and shattering effect.
CONGA COMPARSA: The most integral, popular, and emblematic elements of the world famous carnivals of Santiago de Cuba can be found in the
beautifully dressed and exciting Congas. The Conga Santiaguera is a mass celebration that speaks of the African origin that is inherent to Cuban
people.
CICLO DE LA RUMBA: Rumba is a manifestation of music and dance born in western Cuba (Havana and Matanzas) and deeply rooted in Cuban
culture. It was created by humble black men living in Solares (tenement buildings) in Cuba, as a way of expressing their social events. While people in
high-society of this era had cherished the foreign culture from Europe, Black people on the street had invented and developed this blend of complex
dance rhythms with deep African roots for their own entertainment, using tools from everyday life as instruments - such as spoons, candle boxes and
chairs. La Rumba has three principal and traditional styles or forms to dance - El Yambu, El Guaganco and Columbia. Presently it constitutes a national
cultural patrimony: "Yambu" is a couple's dance where dancers imitate the movements of their elders; "Guaguanco" is also a couples dance which
emulates the courting/mating act as a competition between a man and woman; and "Columbia" is a competition between the most skillful male
dancers and the principal leading drum.
SON: One of the most basic forms of Afro-Cuban music and dance. Its existence is documented as early as the late 19th century. Son has various
choreographic variations and numerous musical styles. It is danced as a couple, similar to the Danzon, but its movements are more open, accentuated
and free.
BEMBE / Dances for the Orishas: In the Afro-Cuban tradition a Bemb is a ceremonial celebration that invites the Orisha to come.
CANIKELA: Popular dances that come from Angola, they where introduce to Cuba in the 1980's by dancer, musician, ethnologist and Choreographer
Aldo Durales in the eastern part of the island.
MERENGUE / CONGO LAYE/BICHEB: From the French / Haitian popular dances in Cuba. They are secular dances (of lascivious movements) that are
performed in the plantations during the resting time (after hard labor) around the coffee drying areas, between the rows of sugar cane, or in any other
work place . These dances were also danced during festivities and celebrations, dedicated to their Patron Saints, or after ceremonies offered to their
Cult.
