‘Potpourri of the Arts’ fuses cultures with song, dance

On Saturday, performers from the African American Arts Institute will come together for “Potpourri of the Arts,” an event that started 15 years ago and is a fusion of the three ensembles the African American Arts Institute encompasses.

The institute, founded in 1974 by Herman Hudson, who started the African-American and African Diaspora Studies Department at IU, brings African American performance and art to the community.

“Potpourri of the Arts” is an effort to bring the style and repertoire of the three ensembles together. The African American Dance Ensemble, IU Soul Revue – a popular soul music ensemble – and the African American Choral Ensemble comprise the institute. The theme of this year’s event, which takes place at 8 p.m. at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, is Looking Back – Pressing Forward.

“The students in the institute are very, very excited about this,” AAAI Executive Director Charles Sykes said.

Each ensemble will perform for 20 minutes on its own, and then everyone will gather for the concert’s finale.

The IU Soul Revue, directed by Nathanael Fareed Mahluli, will take the stage first on Saturday. Soul Revue is a male and female vocal ensemble accompanied by a horn line and rhythm section. The Revue combines an eclectic mix of soul and contemporary music into its performances, including selections from Earth, Wind & Fire and Kool and the Gang.

The African American Dance Company will grace the stage next. Professor Iris Rosa, who has directed the company since 1974, is the main choreographer for the performance. This will be the dance company’s 35th concert to date. Like all ensembles, the dance company is a course offered through the school of African American Diaspora Studies for which students can audition.

This semester, the company has 16 members. The performance will focus on experience and expression in a larger scope by looking at a whole spectrum of music, Rosa said. The dancers will perform to artists such as Funkadesi and Incognito, among others.

The company may move in unison on stage, but the individual expression of each performer is what Rosa said she thinks makes the company appealing to the audience.

For Rosa, however, her company’s performance isn’t just about dancing.

They are getting an education on collaborating with technicians, lighting and technology. The performance is a visual text the viewer has to look beyond in order to see what the students are learning, Rosa said.

“If people don’t look beyond and question what the students are doing, they’re missing the whole boat,” Rosa said.

The African American Choral Ensemble will perform last before the grand finale. In his third year of directing the ensemble, Keith McCutchen is looking forward to the smaller groups of his ensemble polishing their image as performers. Sojourner, an all-female vocal group, and God’s Progress are two smaller groups within the choir. The group will perform “It’s me, It’s Me, It’s Me Oh Lord” and “We’re Marching to Zion,” which are two spiritual arrangements by Raymond Wise. Saturday will also serve as the premiere of “Witness,” a piece by Professor David Baker. This will be its first time performed by a full chorus.

“He has meant so much to the Bloomington community, and it’s an honor for us to perform one of his works,” Sykes said about Baker.

The choral ensemble will also perform an original piece by McCutchen titled “Comfort Ye/Oh Come All Ye Faithful.”

“I’m looking forward to the whole performance. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun,” said senior Max Tholenaar-Maples, a drummer in the ensemble.

The finale of “Potpourri of the Arts” is collaboration between all three ensembles. It will cover a wide array of music and choreography.

“This gives me an opportunity to really see the students work together,” Rosa said.