Written By: Dumebi Favour Ezekeke
If you were an avid follower of the iShowSpeed Africa tour, like me, you probably noticed that when he got to Cote d’Ivoire, he danced alongside a towering figure dressed in a striped bodysuit, crowned with a brightly colored mask. The figure’s ankles were heavy with strung bells or seed pods, and layers of raffia skirts shook with every movement. Together, both bodies launched into a dance that puts the popular Nigerian “legwork” to shame. Rightly so.
The dance is called Zaouli, and it is regarded as one of the hardest dances in the world, even though it might not seem that way at first glance. While the dancer’s legs moves in rhythms so tight they appear almost repetitive, no two steps are ever repeated at the same time. The feet blur, dart, stamp, and slide with mechanical precision, demanding breath control, balance, and endurance all at once. An average dancer in training takes up to seven years to fully master the form and perform it seamlessly.
But before jumping the gun on the dance itself and its significance, we have to take a few steps backwards, to the beginning.
Where did Zaouli come from? Why are different Ivorian masks used for different dancers? What kind of dance is it, really? Is it passed down from family to family, or can any Ivorian who feels called to it take the training and begin to dance? And finally, why is Zaouli so revered in Ivory Coast?