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AACHM Oral History: Leah Bass-Baylis
Leah Bass-Baylis was born in 1954 in Ypsilanti. Her parents Thomas and Louise Bass–a doctor and teacher–were influential members of Ypsilanti’s Black community. She studied dance at Ypsilanti’s Randazzo Dance Theater and graduated from Spelman College in Atlanta in 1976. She also holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Organizational Change from the University of Southern California. Bass-Baylis was a dancer and choreographer for many Broadway shows, including performing in The Tap Dance Kid. In her later career as an administrator, she developed arts education programs in Los Angeles. She and her husband Doug Baylis have four children.
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Sonabai: Another Way of Seeing - Dr. Stephen Huyler
As part of the Rasa Festival, Dr. Stephen Huyler presents a fascinating talk that recounts an amazing story of the discovery of a rural Indian woman's beautiful art.
While imprisoned by her husband for fifteen years, a woman in central India invented an entirely new art form that expresses life's joy. Although Sonabai was illiterate and untrained, her artistic vision is now globally acknowledged. Her work has been the agent of significant social and economic improvement in her region. Sonabai's astonishing story confronts us with our own choices: do we allow ourselves to be victimized by our current issues or can we use our own inner resources to find creative solutions?
An exhibition of Sonabai's art was on view at the Riverside Art Center in Ypsilanti throughout the month of September 2018.
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Tales of the Tango With Tango Expert Mabel Rodriguez
It's time to learn about the Tango! The Tango evolved from new dances that immigrants brought into Argentina more that 150 years ago. Learn more when Tango expert Mabel Rodriguez will discuss this fascinating dance and its history, complete with live Tango demonstrations. Mabel Rodr?guez is currently the coordinator of the Intermediate Intensive Spanish program at the Residential College at the University of Michigan and has been an active member of the Michigan Argentine Tango Club of the University of Michigan since 2002.
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Capoeira Mandinga Michigan: Afro-Brazilian Dance and Martial Arts
Enjoy Afro-Brazilian dance and martial arts with performers from Capoeira Mandinga Michigan. The only indigenous American martial art, Capoeira was developed by African slaves in Brazil in the 1600s and it became a strong weapon in the life and death struggle against their oppressors. With strong aerobic and dance elements, Capoeira is both an art form and self-defense. Watch performers incorporate aerobic and dance moves that are as graceful as a panther and as treacherous as a snake.