![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/african-dance-show-(ida-marshall-lappe)5.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe African Diaspora Dance and Drum shows are a staple of the Berkeley High School calendar, drawing big audiences of students, families, alumni, and dance enthusiasts alike. This year\u2019s spring showcase was a sendoff to the senior dancers as well as a tribute to the late Reverend Dr. Robert McKnight, a key figure in establishing the first high school Black Studies program in the country at BHS. His mantra, \u201cI am teachable,\u201d was echoed throughout the performance, and connected to the show\u2019s guiding theme \u201cNyansapo,\u201d the Ghanaian wisdom knot.\u00a0<\/p>\n
McKnight\u2019s legacy played a part in the entire show. Each African Diaspora Dance and Drum show begins with a libation to honor people\u2019s ancestors, typically via the drawing of names. However, on Monday, April 27, 2026, this was done through a slideshow featuring photos of the performers\u2019 loved ones, backed by McKnight\u2019s favorite song, \u201cMy Ancestors.\u201d McKnight was also featured in a short student skit in the middle of the show.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The showcase then transitioned into a land and labor acknowledgment, the Black National Anthem, a slam poetry piece delivered by BHS freshman Kanani Maroto Lockwood, and a piece by the Praise Dancers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy favorite part was Praise because I\u2019m not really a religious person, but praise really helped me come out of my shell a little bit more. And, you know, it really helped me see things through,\u201d Tabitha Jefferson, a BHS senior and dancer, said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Months of work go into each show. But some elements were harder to plan for, such as the location change to Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School\u2019s stage due to BHS on-campus construction. The new stage posed challenges, but was also nostalgic for some.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Nyansapo” was the guiding theme.\n <\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cIt was difficult to work with. I cannot lie. I haven\u2019t danced on that stage since my freshman year when the A Building was still being renovated, but I thought it was a nice full circle moment that I ended the way I started,\u201d said Corina Blanton, a BHS senior who has been dancing in AfAm shows for\u00a0 four years.<\/p>\n
Nyansapo and blends of old and new were seen with the addition of students from Ruth Acty Elementary School performing alongside the dancers. \u201cI\u2019m so happy for Mama Jessica and Baba MD who have had the opportunity to teach generations to come the importance of movement and rhythm,\u201d said Blanton. She plans to support her fellow dancers in showcases to come. In fact, most of the senior dancers and drummers are looking for ways to keep pieces of the AfAm dance and drum experience with them as they enter the real world.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was my last one, so that\u2019s pretty special,\u201d Miles Aki, a BHS senior drummer, said. Aki has been in the class for two years. \u201cThe class almost feels like family. It\u2019s more than just learning the music and dancing … It\u2019s also about connecting with everybody. I think I\u2019ll try to find more groups in the future that I can join and maybe find the same experience,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Blanton said, \u201cI felt bittersweet about this year being my last show. It hasn\u2019t fully settled in yet that I won\u2019t be back (…) next year, but I think it will probably will when I walk across the stage less than a month from now.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The African Diaspora Dance and Drum shows are a staple of the Berkeley High School calendar, drawing big…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":306789,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[143,145,144],"class_list":["post-306788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/306788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=306788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/306788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/306789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=306788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=306788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=306788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}