Alima International Dance Association by Gabrielle Chase

 

 

Vonyee J. Moore is the president of the URI chapter of the Alima International Dance Association. “Alima” is an Arabic word meaning “one who is skilled in dance and song”. The group was established by two Muslim sisters from Senegal who shared a passion for creative expression, thus creating the group whose popularity grew worldwide.

 

URI’s chapter has been active since its establishment eleven years ago. There are more chapters at University of Connecticut, Rhode Island College, and Rutgers University. Moore choreographs the group’s performance numbers with vice president Tayo Balogun. Their influences range from Caribbean, Latin American, Middle Eastern and various regions of African dance styles. 

 

“All our dances are what our members create… so it’s whatever the individuals are comfortable with, that’s what we use,” says Balogun.

 

This year is Moore’s second year as president. Her first year was while she was still a junior and was directing older students in practice. Now in her senior year, most members are underclassmen who while in practice, are taut with attention to Vonyee’s directions. They manage to make light of each other’s difficulties with certain moves and motivate each other with loud reinforcement. Moore’s experience as president exudes in her strong presences in Edwards Auditorium. Her role as president reflects on her vibrant personality and strong will.

 

Yet being president also comes with hardships. There is a lot of busywork involved with coordinating practices and events. Plus, making sure everyone is on the same page and confident in their ability to perform often falls to Moore.

 

“Even as my second year as president, I’ve learned so much about myself, that I’m like, whoa… I’m definitely a commander-in-chief person. That’s my go-to, I’m always about business, I’m always busy, but another thing that I notice is that I’ve learned that I need to delegate more because I always end up putting everything on my plate,” says Moore.

 

Alima recently performed at URI’s pep rally “Rhody Rally” along with other performance groups. Alima always tends to draw the audience in with their exotic aura and upbeat tempo. The song they danced to, “Ca Donga”, is by an African group from Paris called BANA C4. Their foreign origin is new to many audience members at URI but nevertheless sets the mood for a dance party in Keaney gym.

 

Rewarding experiences such as performances like at the pep rally are what inspires the Alima group to keep working on and improving their techniques. They’re constantly switching up their material as to allure and entertain their audiences wherever they go. Moore has grown herself, as a dancer and as a leader, by being held responsible for the success of the group.

 

“One of the greatest things about being president is that you learn so much about yourself as well as learning about the group… the beautiful part about that is that you’re leading them. You’re the captain and they look up to you. So that’s definitely pressure, but it’s a bittersweet feeling,” says Moore.