Les Guirivoires group from Côte d’Ivoire on Tuesday lighted up the Palais de la Culture with varied traditional dance pieces during an animated performance at MASA 2020, which ended last Saturday with dissimilar performances. Accompanied by a wide variety of drumming, the dancers moved severally and jointly as they showcased a choreographed piece on traditional dances that ranged from initiation rites to courtship and other ceremonial dances. Clad in colorful costumes with some dancers sporting bare but pain- ted breasts, the group dazzled the audience with brisk forward and sideward thrusts of arms alongside rippling gestures and gyrating waists.

“It was an elegant performance – undeniably, they worked their way into the hearts and souls of the crowd like a delicate rose flower”, said Maurice Andre, a teacher from the French capital, Paris.

Each segment is filled with inventive dance details together with solos and duets that are sensitive exploits of remarkable springs on stage. Indeed, the dancers moved with grace and elegance as the audience wat- ched with keen attention.

Exhibiting dedication and astute skill – they displayed gusty and jumpy delivery with an enviably well drilled precision – alongside rousing natural togetherness, thereby drawing cheers and applause in the process.