As a prelude to Kwanzaa comes “Biyasi,” or journey, the theme of Muntu Dance Theatre’s holiday engagement through this weekend at the DuSable Museum of African American History.
Ideal family entertainment, the performances are part of a new association for the troupe and the museum, where the sleek, comfortable auditorium provides a nice setting for dance with an ample, accommodating stage.
Even better, the troupe is in top shape, as energetic, colorful and rousing as ever. Much of Muntu’s style turns on the company’s exuberance, joy and tireless acrobatics. The mood is often one of festivity and smiles.
That tends to disguise an attribute critical to all dance and delivered by Muntu’s artistic director Amaniyea Payne: discipline. Carnival delight may be the mood, but what makes Muntu one of the better troupes in the city is its drilled accuracy and uniform choral timing.
Despite the dizzying footwork and the rapid structural changes, set to a speedy percussive pace, the dancers never err, fall behind or betray the slightest mistake in rhythm or gesture. They smile, beam and seduce the audience with happiness, but they are working hard and with an exhilarating efficiency.
The program includes three new works, all of them winners. Moustapha Bangoura’s “Hamana” is a zestful finale, beginning with a ritualistic opening, wherein Payne and another dancer symbolically stir from wooden bowls held by a dignitary. The rest is an assault of energy, the men and women alternating in a feverish, almost uncanny celebration.
Bangoura also contributes “Mamaya,” a new work inspired by the Malinke people of Guinea, West Africa. A dance about historians, it is traditionally a salute to the chief at receptions, though more frequently used now for a number of community activities, including weddings. Defined as much by its haunting song and chanting as its dance, “Mamaya” is a soothing, pastoral work, costumed with bright blue and white silken robes, scarves, canes and white hats, tipped at key moments to the crucial onstage drummers.
“Tomanka/Liberte” is another new piece, this one by Idy Ciss. Brightened by the bold stripes of Chiekh Geuye’s costumes, this one is an intricately structured work that leads to another dazzling ensemble finish. The title refers to both family ties and freedom, but, in the end, it’s the delight of the latter that rules the day.
The program includes the beautiful and beautifully clad opening, “Kiara,” by Payne and Djeril Traore, featuring an entry from the theater’s rear. “Journey” combines African and Caribbean stylistics, the latter delivered in part by a saucy solo by Payne, sporting a lush and colorful feathery headdress.
A “Tribute to Our Ancestors” features a poetic salute to figures such as Marcus Garvey and Malcolm X as well as a musical potpourri. Throughout, the extraordinary drummers accompany with gusto and at times are a show all by themselves.
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Muntu performs through Sunday at the DuSable Museum, 740 E. 56th Pl. For tickets: 773-602-1135.
