South Africa has been on my mind for a month and as I reflected on the hiatus I took from writing this blog, I recall a promise to visit next year. The month began with an email from my Johannesburg friend Bongani Madando who just returned from Berlin and decided to connect several of us, Afropolitans, with an dynamic email message; I call it a creative digital meetup of people living across the globe. It got me laughing and reflecting on how small the world we live in is. I even spent the time going to Madiba in Brooklyn to eat, another South African moment and took a look at the African Leadership Network (www.africanleadershipnetwork.com).

I am excited to see the work of Gregory Maqoma with the dance company Vuyani Dance Theatre coming to Brooklyn, even if it is just for 2 days this November. His New York Premiere work Exit/Exist is being presented by 651 ARTS, a presenting organization dedicated to the work of contemporary artists from the African Diaspora and produced by MAPP International Productions, a New York arts based organization dedicated to developing sustainable environments for artists to create, premiere and tour performing arts projects.

Go see this company perform – they are just here for 2 whole days.  651 Arts says that “through his powerful performance incorporating theater, storytelling, and his own dynamic dance vocabulary, Maqoma explores his ancestral legacy–and reveals the history of a 19th–century Xhosa warrior who fought to maintain cultural traditions in the face of colonial dispossession. Maqoma’s exploration of race and political power, cultural tradition and personal legacy is a deeply moving work that will leave a lasting impact.” They even have a deal to entice you. Tickets are $25/$20 for students and seniors. Please enter: 25FALL for a special 10% discount. Here is a link to purchase tickets: http://kumbletheater.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=598705 Or call 718-488-1624.

The rest of the article will be on Huffington Post next week.