EVENTS: A TOE-TAPPING EVENING
Step Afrika!’s Magical Musical Holiday Step Show at Arena Stage
Written by Dara Klatt for Washington Life Magazine, December 11, 2023
If you’ve ever felt inspired to dash to the stage after a live dance performance, and put your arms in the air, thrust your hips and groove to the music, then Step Afrika’s “Magical Musical Holiday Step Show” at Arena Stage is a must. You won’t join the award-winning dancers on the Fichandler Stage, but the audience is invited to the stage for both an inclusive line dance and then a free dance as “DJ Nutcracker” sets the beats for a joy-filled, family-friendly evening.
This holiday “stepstravaganza” incorporates the African American tradition of stepping with Washington flair. Audience participation – such as shouting, stomping, or shaking a rattle – is encouraged throughout much of the production including the “The Arctic Step Challenge,” where the cool and dapper “The Gingerbread Men” in the Step Afrika! company face off against the peppy “Peppermint Candies” women.
The production is billed as the world’s first holiday show incorporating the African American tradition of stepping. So shake up your lineup of traditional holiday productions, and hoot, holler, sing and dance with your loved ones with Step Afrika!