Saturday, November 27, 2010
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Hoop dancer Peter Chiquita, of Columbus, performed for the students at Poland Union Elementary School Nov. 19. He started his routine with five hoops and worked his way up to using 23 hoops.
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Hoop dancer Peter Chiquita gave a few students a chance to create their own formation using his hoops.
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Hoop dancer Peter Chiquita (far right) performed for the students at Poland Union Elementary School Nov. 19. Before he started, he gave the students a brief explanation of hoop dancing.
By ABBY SLANKER
Students at Poland Union Elementary School were treated to a hoop dance demonstration by Peter Chiquito Nov. 19. Chiquito, of Columbus, is of Navajo and Apache descent and began hoop dancing at age 10 with five hoops. He now uses up to 23 hoops and continues to add more each year.
Chiquito awed the students with his hoop dancing to drum music. Dressed in customary Native American garb, he performed his first dance with five hoops and as he continued through his routine, adding more and more hoops to each dance.
Hoop dance is a form of storytelling dance, which is used in healing ceremonies, utilizing hoops to create shapes or formations representing animals and storytelling elements. The dance focuses on rapid movements and the construction of hoop formations around the body.
Much to the delight of the students, during his dances, Chiquito formed butterflies, eagles, snakes and a coyote, with the hoop symbolizing the never-ending circle of life.
According to Chiquito, the hoops each dancer uses are made just for that dancer.
“The size of my hoops is proportional to my height. They are personalized just for me,” Chiquito said.
Chiquito even called up a few lucky students to let them try their hand at creating formations. He showed them how to create a form with the hoops and each one proudly displayed his or her creation.
Chiquito also showed the students a traditional Native American flute and hand drum. He demonstrated the hand drum and explained to students that the player of the drum may hold it several ways to achieve different drum sounds.