W&L Presents Okaidja Afroso’s ‘Jaku Mumor: Ancestral Spirit’ The March 29 performance is part of the Lenfest Center’s Outreach & Engagement Series.

Office of Communications and Public Affairs
March 20, 2025

Editor’s note: The following release was written by Allison Munck ’27 for W&L’s Lenfest Center for the Arts.

The Lenfest Center at Washington and Lee University presents “Jaku Mumor: Ancestral Spirit,” performed by Ghanian musician and dancer Okaidja Afroso, on March 29 at 7:30 p.m. in Wilson Concert Hall in the Lenfest Center for the Arts.

This performance is the final installment of the Lenfest Center’s Outreach & Engagement (O&E) Series. Tickets are required and are available online or in person at the Lenfest Box Office.

Through his distinctive style that combines various percussion instruments, vocals, guitar and dance, Afroso explores the perseverance of ancestral traditions and creates a new, complex and contemporary African oral tradition, presenting an unforgettable and unique experience.

Afroso released “Jaku Mumor” in 2022, providing a musical glimpse into the rich history and cultural inheritance of the Ghanaian coastline along the Gulf of Guinea. The album draws inspiration from the ecological knowledge of the Indigenous Ga-Dangme fishermen, exploring the power of nature-based rituals and the connections Afroso’s ancestors had to the elemental world. More specifically, this project explores the cultural roles of music, dance and storytelling in American Indigenous and Ga-Dangme communities as well as Indigenous perspectives on the element of water and the sanctity of fish.

Through this project, Afroso aims to foster conversations about the challenges facing Indigenous communities around the world, including the consequences of rising sea levels on fishing communities and the effects of economic development on cultural preservation. Throughout his creative production process, Afroso hopes to learn about Indigenous resiliency practices and share them with the wider public.

Afroso grew up in a family of storytellers and musicians in Kokrobite, a fishing village on the western coast of Ghana. His childhood was full of music, as he often worked side by side with a-capella-singing fishermen, learning the songs of the sea. At 19, he became a principal dancer with the Ghana Dance Ensemble and in 1999 he was invited to bring his artistic talent to Portland, Oregon by the late Obo Addy. There, he joined a team of musicians and dancers dedicated to promoting West African culture to audiences across the Pacific Northwest. Afroso has produced four albums and has been commissioned to score both dance and theater productions. He takes inspiration from his research on the music of the African diaspora and has worked to harmonize the unique essences of both African and African American music.

In his work, Afroso extends ancestral traditions, combining various mediums of movement and soul to create a contemporary African oral tradition. His work embraces and conveys the rich complexity of the cross-culturally integrated world we live in and expertly weaves themes of joy, hope, tragedy and harmony. Afroso’s musical style blends traditional rhythms with modern harmonies, paying homage to his cultural heritage and creating a unique musical depth through a vibrant layering of percussion, guitar and vocals. “Jaku Mumor” dives deep into Afroso’s roots, drawing on his time with the Ga-Dangme fishermen and their singing and chants in his musical presentation.

In addition to his March 29 performance, Afroso will engage in an immersive and empowering dialogue with students in W&L’s Pickens World Music classroom, the Africana Studies Program, the Environmental Studies Program, and the Department of Theater, Dance, and Film Studies, as well cadets from the Virginia Military Institute.

Order your tickets online today or call the Lenfest Center box office at 540-458-8000 for ticket purchase information. Box office hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The cost is $30 for adults, $27 for seniors, $24 for W&L faculty and staff and $8 for students.

This performance is sponsored in part by the Class of 1964 Performing Arts Fund.

For a full list of this season’s performances, visit the Lenfest Center’s website.

The Lenfest Center for the Arts, home of the Department of Theater, Dance, and Film Studies and the Department of Music and Department of Art and Art History is a multi-use facility designed and equipped to accommodate a broad spectrum of the performing arts, including theater, musical theater, opera and operetta, choral and band music, dance and performance art in one energizing complex.