Chandra Washington has enjoyed over 30
years of studying, performing and choreographing traditional West African dance
from the Ancient Mali Empire era. In
addition to performing African dance, she also specializes in an improv style
combining modern dance expressions with movements from the African
Diaspora. Her earliest dance training
took place while studying at the University
of Maryland, where she
joined Improvisations Unlimited, directed by Miriam Rosen. With a background of modern and
improvisational dance, her dance focus changed in 1978 upon meeting Assane
Kounte, master dancer/choreographer, who at the time was acting choreographer
for Wo'se Dance Theater in Washington, D.C.
(currently Artistic Director of KanKouran West African Dance Company in Washington). She trained and performed with Wo'se for 2
years, eventually teaching community classes.
During this period, she also began a longstanding relationship as a
freelance dancer with the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra. Currently a dancer and vocalist with the Arkestra, performance highlights include
the Whitney Museum,
New York (Composers
Showcase, 1981), Ruta Maya in Austin,
TX (2006), the Uncool Festival, Poschiavo,
Switzerland
(2012), and the Centennial Dream Tour (Europe, 2014).
Chandra also received
invaluable training from the now defunct International Afrikan-American
Ballet of Brooklyn, N.Y., with Hazel Starks-Bryant as primary teacher of the dance and its history.
She also trained and performed with jali Djimo Kouyate's Memory of African Culture in D.C. as a dancer
and vocalists, singing in the traditional Malinke language. In 1980, she co-founded Cosan Arts
Ensemble in D.C. Additional
important training came from Melvin Deal, Director of the African Heritage
Dancers in D.C., and an array of workshops and master classes hosted by
Chuck Davis, Assane Kounte, Marie Basse Ndele Wiles, Yousouf Koubassa, Amadou
Boly, and Aminayea Payne, among others. In
D.C., she performed in several prestigious venues including the Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian.
While in Richmond,
Virginia (1985-‘90), Chandra served on the
Adjunct Faculty of Virginia
Commonwealth University's Department of Dance & Choreography as instructor of their advanced-level African dance
course. She also served as consultant to
Ezibu Muntu African Dance Company, and a host of community organizations
and educational institutions in the Richmond area (including
lecture/demonstrations for the Richmond Public School System), and co-founded the performance
company, Legacy: An Arts Collective.
After 5 years in Richmond,
Chandra returned to D.C. in 1990, joining Assane Kounte's KanKouran, where she performed for 2 years. While residing in Honduras,
Central America in 1996, Chandra conducted a
special African dance workshop for the country’s national company, Danzas Y
Teatro Folkloricas Garifunas.
