By Catherine Ellerton
Moapa Valley Progress
A swirl of color and movement transformed the musical stories told at the recent Native American Day Celebration at the Lost City Museum in Overton on Saturday, November 10.
Tribal Dancers from the Horse Creek Intertribal Dance Troupe took a moment from their busy schedule to visit the Museum and share their artistry. Their travels take them to venues in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Montana and Canada to share with others the varied traditions of each Native American Nation.
Dancer Candice Herrera of the Navajo Nation explained that the regalia are handmade by the dancers.
There are no set steps to the dances-each dancer performs as the music and story sways them. Flute player/dancer Craig Luther, also of the Navajo Nation, introduced a beautiful solo that was composed as the way in which the trees connect with humans – through music.
Herrera and Naomi McCabe danced the beautiful Fancy Shawl Dance which tells the story of a grieving widow who wraps herself in her shawl or cocoon and is transformed into a beautiful person as she emerges.
The story of the crow as it hops and skips about dragging its tail feather to erase its footprints was told by dancer Dion Martineau of the Cree Nation. The dancers gathered together to perform the Intertribal Dance.
The day started with such uncertainty in the weather. Was it going to rain? Was the wind going to blow? Canopies had to be set up at the last moment and some vendors and dancers came despite black ice conditions encountered in the road on their journey. The museum staff and volunteers and Native American dancers must be commended for their dedication in accomplishing such a perfect performance on a day that turned out to be an ideal desert autumn day.
