VOA慢速英语--移民家庭将西非舞蹈带到美国

Family Brings West African Dance to American City

In West Africa, dancing is an important part of many family traditions.

An ocean away, in the United¹ States, a German-Jamaican-American family has made performing those dances part of their tradition.

Their family name is Von Hendricks. Six years ago, two sisters and their brother formed an African dance company. They named it “Keur Khaleyi,” which means² the House of Children in Wolof, a language in Senegal.

The group is based in the eastern U.S. city of Baltimore, Maryland. Its members perform in local and national festivals. They also recently set up a school to teach dance moves to others.

At first, the dance company was made up of two dancers, sisters Jihan and Ayana, and their brother Shakai, who played the drum. Soon, two younger family members joined them. Later, a sister-in-law joined the group.

The family performs dances from Senegal, Mali and Guinea, but has no family ties to those places.

My grandfather was German and my grandmother was from Jamaica, Jihan Von Hendricks told VOA. She said her interest in dance started when she was a child. Her parents made her attend an African dance school. She learned³ a few dance moves, then taught her brother and sister. In time, the West African culture became part of who they were.

“My heart really is with Senegal,” Jihan added⁴.

There, she said, people dance for all kinds of reasons: to play with children; to honor⁵ a woman before she is married; to mark the end of the harvest.

Her brother, Shakai, says his heart is also with Senegal. He loves African drumming. "Ever since I saw it when I was 10, I was hooked⁶,” he remembers.

Performing together strengthens⁷ family ties and fuels creativity⁸. Shakai added “Our parents knew what they were doing. They put us into this at a young age to keep us together."

"My happy place"

The Von Hendricks family uses the dance company to keep generations close.

Jihan’s daughter, 13 year old Diallo, dances and plays the drum with the group. She started dancing when she was 18 months old. She says it helped her develop social skills and make friends. She likes everything about performing: the music, the costumes⁹ and the feeling of accomplishment¹⁰.

Dancing is “my happy place,” Diallo said.

The Von Hendricks share their joy and knowledge with their neighbors in Baltimore.

One of their students is a 71-year old hair stylist, Shakoorah El Sharief. She learned many African dances in the past, but says she likes West African dances best.

"I love everything about it,” she says. "It’s like my medicine."

The Von Hendricks' dream is to teach more members of their community and family about West African dances and drumming.

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

Words in This Story

festival - n. an organized series¹¹ of performances

drum - n. a musical instrument that is made with a thin layer of skin or plastic stretched over the end of a round frame¹² and that is played by hitting the skin or plastic with sticks or with your hands

hooked - adj. very interested in and enthusiastic about something

stylist - n. a person whose job is to make something look attractive

1 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

2 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

3 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

4 added   

adj.更多的，附加的，额外的

参考例句：

• They have added a new scene at the beginning.在开头他们又增加了一场戏。
• The pop music added to our enjoyment of the film.片中的流行音乐使我们对这部电影更加喜爱。

5 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

6 hooked   

adj.钩状的，弯曲的

参考例句：

• I first got hooked on scuba diving when I was twelve. 12 岁时我开始迷上了带水肺潜水。
• He hooked his arm round her neck and pulled her head down. 他一只胳膊钩在她的脖子上，把她的头拉低。

7 strengthens   

v.加强，巩固( strengthen的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Regular exercise strengthens the heart, thereby reducing the risk of heart attack. 经常锻炼可以增强心脏机能，从而减少心脏病发作的危险。
• The study further strengthens the evidence linking smoking with early death. 这项研究进一步证实了吸烟与早逝之间的联系。 来自辞典例句

8 creativity   

n.创造力，创造

参考例句：

• There is limited scope for creativity in my job.我的工作中发挥创造力的空间有限。
• She got an unusually low score for creativity.在创造力方面，她得了异乎寻常的低分。

9 costumes   

n.服装；装束

参考例句：

• The costumes and lighting in the play were restrained. 这出戏的服装和灯光都很朴实。
• The waitresses are all done up in costumes. 女服务生都穿着制服。

10 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

11 series   

n.连续；系列

参考例句：

• The students have put forward a series of questions.学生们提出了一系列问题。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

12 frame   

n.框架，结构，体格；vt.构成，设计，制定，使适合，陷害； 框架，（是指在数据链路层中，将网络层数据包加上开始与结尾信息包组成一个框架）

参考例句：

• The house has a wooden frame which is faced with brick.这个房子是木质结构的砖瓦房。
• We must frame up that picture.我们必须给那幅画装上框。