Monday, June 22, 2009

Masai Warrior Chant a TADW Tradition

If you were strolling through Nordhoff Hall at CSUN on June 22, as the Teenage Drama Workshop held its opening day activities, you might have heard an unfamiliar cry from the Studio Theatre...a Masai Warrior chant. TADW director Doug Kaback began the tradition of singing the African chant on the first and last days of TADW when he took over the program a dozen years ago. Today, he taught students the opening verse “Ya fa ah ya yea lay; Ya fa ah ya yea lay; Mmm dogo jiggy zo.” With their typical exuberance, both the new and returning students took part in the call-and-response style song with Kaback. (Video to come soon!) Kaback says the Masai Warrior chant is “about youth, community, continuity and prosperity.” Look for the company to sing it again at Munch & Crunch on Aug. 2, the traditional culmination of TADW.


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