On September 7th, the Griot Institute welcomed Bucknellians and friends to the new school year with the annual Griot Institute Opening Celebration. Kicking off the Griot’s season with a performance from the first-year pre-orientation group, Arts First, the new students presented an array of performances, including a poetry reading, a modern-style dance to an acapella song, and closed with a hip-hop dance piece. Their performance warmed up the stage for the main act, who would set the stage on fire.
Immediately after, Lewisburg was taken across the world as the West African Dance and Drumming group, Soul in Motion, led the crowd with a drumming line. Hidden from the audience’s view, our ears were stimulated first, making our hearts race with angst for the mystery of a performance to come. Many necks were craned, swaying left and right for a mere glimpse of the performers hidden from our view. Just when the audience began to fidget restlessly, in poured a wave of boisterous booms bouncing off the walls and flooding the room. With their drums in hand, the men marched onward to the center stage as the women of the dance group performed a series of choreographies composed of varying West African dances, even venturing out into the crowd and encouraging the audience to participate.
Occasionally, several audience members popped over to the food bar to grab a slice of pizza or refresh themselves with a cooling glass of lemonade. I know I enjoyed a treat with the Pelican Snowballs snowcones. It seemed to be a crowd favorite, especially amongst the younger crowd.
As the celebration drew to a close, audience members were drawn to the stage, engaging in a 20-minute dance-a-thon, bringing dance moves they had either tucked away or recently learned. There were roars of laughter, applause, and infectious smiles spread across the room. The fun didn’t stop there, though. Before the beginning of the event, as attendees crowded in, they were presented with the opportunity to enter a raffle for some cool prizes such as Griot swag, varying books of prominent Black literature featuring standout pieces by Toni Morrison and Jamaica Kincaid. Cymone Fourshey, Director of the Bucknell Griot Institute for the Study of Black Lives and Cultures, stepped on the mic, pulling audience members to the edge of their seats waiting to hopefully hear their names. The tension was thick, as even the snowcone fanatics had stopped mid-order to hear about the lucky winner.
This year, the Griot Institute is proud to announce that its theme is Decolonial Education and Liberatory Learning. Each event of the Spring Series will be centered around Toni Morrison’s vision of a clearing and how the Bucknell community can foster an environment to create decolonial education and liberatory learning.
Stay tuned for much more from the Griot, including, but not limited to, the weekly West African Drum lessons, Fall Book Groups, Bucknell in the Caribbean Summer 2025 Study Abroad Informational Sessions, Book Launches, and the anticipated return of the Dancing Mind Challenge. You can stay in the loop with what’s happening here by visiting this website and following our Facebook and Instagram pages @bucknellgriotinstitute.
–Athaliah Elvis