workshops  and   classes

Amai Kuda et Les Bois offer the following workshops that can be catered to a range of audiences/participants, whether they be groups of children, youth,  adults or all-ages groups.  All of the following workshops can be offered on a one-time basis, or as a finite or ongoing series. Y n' Amai work from an anti-oppressive framework where  all people are respected equally and we strive to create space where members of marginalized communities can feel safe and valued. We are able to offer specialized workshops to children, youth and adults on how to work from this framework so that people of all genders  and sexual identities, class-backgrounds, races and ethnicities, as well as varying abilities and disabilities can feel respected. 

**For the workshops described below, temporary access to a green space (some grass and trees) is helpful to do the exercises properly, but the workshop can be adapted if no green space is available.

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Art  for  change

This workshop supports participants in the creation or development of artistic work as tools for social change.  Y and Amai utilize body percussion exercises, a sharing circle,  music  and storytelling, as well as other interactive exercises to explore the idea of creating art as a vehicle for local and global transformation. Participants will be given an opportunity to share excerpts or whole compositions that are relevant to the theme, and to work individually on their own pieces with support from Amai Kuda and Y Joesphine. 

Drum  it  up! 
Drum  it  out!

 Participants will have fun with body- percussion exercises, as well as learning basic drumming technique and exercises. Together we will also learn sequences and rhythms,  which will be catered to the different skill levels of different participants. Some will play small percussion instruments, such as the guiro, the maracas, the cow bell, and the claves, while the majority will play djembe or cajon. There will be opportunities to rotate instruments so that people build a range of skills. In the second half of the workshop we explore drumming meditation as a way for participants to release stress and access their creativity. We then move into the creation of soundscapes and collective improvisation.  Here participants are able to use voice, body percussion, or spoken word poetry, to add to the sonic collage. 

digging deep!
Getting hip to his/herstories

This workshop utilizes body percussion exercises to engage participants’ body’s, minds and spirits, as well as  storytelling as a vehicle to examine and weave together the history of the last several thousand years on this planet in an engaging way, with many opportunities for questions and conversation along the way. Participants are also given an opportunity to share  their own stories and to enable the group to collectively examine how each of us is somehow a part of the larger story.  The workshop also incorporates music-creation and interactive exercises as a means of exploring different social issues and the  personal stories that relate to these.

drumming  meditation

This workshop, open to all ages and skill-levels, provides an opportunity to relieve stress, learn to drum and have fun through a guided drumming meditation workshop. Beginning with a  drumming class that covers basic technique and provides exercises that are helpful for percussionists at any stage, the second half of the workshop then builds upon this foundation and allows participants to explore the meditative and spiritual healing power of the drum. 

inspiration! :
What inspires you?

This workshop is really about finding or exploring one's  own voice/s.  Participants are invited to share short works, original or not,  that are relevant to the theme. For younger participants, materials (music, books, poems) to draw from will be provided.  Amai Kuda and Y Josephine will lead the participants in an activity to explore the idea of Inspiration. The workshop concludes with participants exploring the Inspiration technique in an ‘improv’ sharing circle.

moyo  wa  africa

Amai Kuda  and Y Josephine use storytelling, music, games and discussion to explore  African Heritage, from historical to present-day.  This workshop can be catered to any age group and has been offered as a series to kids at the Africentric school (3-12), teens at the Boys and Girls Club, as well as adults at at AnitaAfrikaDub Theatre amongst other locations. 


* *The Moyo workshops are offered under the umbrella of the group Moyo Wa Africa and workshops with other facilitators can also be arranged. MWA workshops explore African and diasporic dance, drumming and music, drama, media and social issues, spirituality, food, aesthetics and any other topic related to African peoples’ cultures and experience etc.