Singing, dancing, sketches

You cannot be on the campus very long before you get a sense of this place as very joyful. The girls are often singing, giggling, talking, telling stories. Kinyarwanda was not a written language until the Germans gave it a written form. The rich tradition of its syntax and vocabulary comes from a Bantu origin and there are Arabic influences, as well. Swahili and Kinyarwanda are very close; most people who speak Kinyarwarda also can speak and/or understand Swahili. The vocabulary of this language is rich and strong; therefore the tradition of story telling and acting out stories is deeply embedded in this culture.

The girls welcome guests with song (even the Sisters welcomed us with song led by Sister Mary Martha.) They sing at Morning Assembly (the Rwanda National Anthem on Mondays) at Mass, at work, in the dorms. They entertain guests at the school, like the group of 5 students from the Westover School in Connecticut who visited along with their faculty chaperones, with a program of “entertainment.” This entertainment included song, dancing, and delightful “sketches” that were so clever and humorous depicting various themes of interest to middle school girls (the Immaculate Conception, fickle boyfriends, outsmarting your rivals. ) The sketches were all performed in English and I was so impressed with the dramatic flair, impeccable timing, interesting dialogue of the plays. The girls are skilled observers; they can play the role of a “boyfriend” with a wandering eye perfectly! The audience was delighted.
The dancing is also impressive; the dancers are graceful and poised; the joy they feel through every pulse beat of the accompanying drums and chanting is palpable. Their traditional costumes give them a graceful, rhythmic pose that carries through the dance and the exquisite synchronicity of their following one another through the choreography. These young women are so talented in so many different ways and they share their talents effectively with their community and those guests whom they welcome in.