The Zone Street Art stage, dedicated to the urban culture, continues to offer quality shows to its public. Since Monday, a dance battle has taken over the stage every afternoon. Don’t miss the finale on Saturday April 20.

By Serges Ahissan

Initiated by the « Fédération ivoirienne de danse » in partnership with MASA, this competition, following pre-selections held last March, saw 16 groups selected for the final phase. The winner will be announced at the end of the grand final, scheduled for Saturday April 20.

The first round featured 4 groups: « L’étoile filante de Yopougon », « Rythmique fusion » from Port-Bouët, « Sexy dance » from Koumassi and « Ivoire family dance » from Abobo.

Under the cheers and ovations of a sympathetic audience, the dancers expressed themselves. Mimics, gestures, rolls, choreography, outfits… the dancers of the day sifted through all their know-how to win the round and gain a spot in the final.

The jury – which was made up of dance professionals – gave its verdict, despite a few grumblers who attempted a coup after more than an hour of performance and some thirty minutes of deliberation. « Ivoire family dance » from Abobo came out on top, followed by étoile filante from Yopougon, « Sexy dance » from Koumassi and finally « Rythmique fusion » ranked 4th.

Today’s winners, through their manager Falet Yoro, let us know that the team, made up of 8 boys and one girl, was formed in 2018 and is not taking part in a dance competition for the first time. Their special feature: they make a point of creating a kind of fresco in which they present several styles of dance (contemporary, traditional, and urban). Their Roukaskas put the young audience into a state of indescribable trance.

It should be noted that three other qualifying rounds are scheduled over the coming days, with a view to finding opponents for Abobo’s « Ivoire family dance » for the climax on Saturday April 20.

Roukaskas: trance and acrobatics

Roukaskas – an accelerated rhythmic phase that amplifies and complicates the drum breaks typical of coupé-décalé – is a dance style. Risky acrobatics, dangerous jumps, contorted limbs, and often dancing on the head with heavy pressure on the neck.

For dancers, roukaskas are a must if you want to join a troupe. Made popular by the late coupé-décalé king DJ Arafat, roukaskas is now seen by dancers as a barometer of the quality of their performances. Nevertheless, it can prove fatal, as was the case in 2018 for young amateur dancer Sévérin Kouamé.

Nevertheless, the dance style is very popular, and audiences love it to such an extent that every roukaskas performance attracts a large crowd. And the dancers are the object of « travaillements », an exercise that consists in showering the artists on stage with banknotes, sometimes pushing them to go beyond the limits of the possible.