Aspen Dance Connection is partnering with Colorado Mountain College (CMC) and Garfield County Libraries to present Logo Ligi, a drum and dance ensemble based in Boulder and led by Maputo Mensah. Logo Ligi is dedicated to sharing traditional dances and stories from West Africa.
Mensah was born in Ghana to a family of professional musicians and dancers and has been performing since his childhood. He is currently the director of the West African Highlife Ensemble at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he teaches traditions from his homeland.
In speaking with Mensah, he expressed profound excitement about bringing the art of Logo Ligi to the Roaring Fork Valley.
“Sometimes people think that art is like a sculpture and don’t know that music is another art form. We are looking forward to bringing the beauty of our artwork to the community,” he stated. “We are bringing an African village to you guys. With an African village, everybody is a part of it. With African music, everybody plays a part to make the village grow.”
According to Mensah, the music that Logo Ligi will perform has a story to tell. He hopes that members of the audience will step out of their comfort zones and participate in each performance.
“Growing up, this music has given me so much to live for, and I look forward to sharing that with people,” Mensah continued. “Some say, ‘Oh I can’t dance because I have two left feet,’ ‘I can’t sing or drum because of this.’ Where I come from, it’s not that you need to be great to be a musician. If you can walk, you can dance, and if you can talk, you can sing — anything is possible.”
The name of the troupe, translated from the Ghanaian language of Ga, means “to tickle, play, or excite.” Fran Page, artistic executive director of Aspen Dance Connection, promises that everyone attending the performances will indeed feel the excitement. Aspen Dance Connection has worked with Logo Ligi since 2011, and in addition to excitement, audiences can expect to share a connection with Mensah and his drummers and dancers.
“When we’ve gone into the schools with Logo Ligi in the past, say after lunch periods, the kids are a little tired. But Maputo knows how to get those drums going and build their energy up until they’re ready to dance,” Page explained. “There’s this permission to participate, and [Maputo] understands his audience well and knows how to pull them along by uplifting them with fun and joy.”
Aspen Dance Connection’s mission is to share original and world dance. Discussing the importance of showcasing world dance to audiences in the Valley, Page said, “Being in rural Colorado, it’s mostly Anglo-white and many Hispanic people. It’s not like New York City, where you can just get on the bus and see every part of the world. Collaborations like this are one way I’ve brought in other cultures.”
This two-day dance marathon is free to attend, beginning on Feb. 24 at the Parachute Library at 10 am, Rifle Library at 1pm, Silt Library at 3pm and New Castle Library at 5pm. Then, on Feb. 25, the group will perform at the Carbondale Library at 1pm and Glenwood Springs Library at 3pm.
For more information and to keep up with Aspen Dance Connection, visit www.aspendanceconnection.org
For Logo Ligi’s website, visit www.logoligi.com