It was a family thing last Saturday afternoon at the St. Vincent Children’s Home in Normandy as Lisa Gage (or “Mama Lisa”) and Fundisha Enterprises presented their stage adaptation of It Takes a Village.
As Mama Lisa sang songs and told stories, showing the importance of community involvement in the successful development of children, her own children shared the stage to help with the tale. Her son was a featured drummer and her two daughters were part of the African dance ensemble.
In the story, one of the most important and powerful characters was the drum.
“The drums beat to the rhythm of life and the patterns that remind them of the lessons of life,” Mama Lisa said, in her illustration of a young girl’s struggle to follow the rhythm. The girl’s resistance resulted in the mishaps that made up the day; the entire village played a part in bringing her back to the rhythm.
No matter where anyone was sitting in the auditorium, the drums could not only be heard, but felt as well. Even the children performers, who were supposed to be on stage sleeping during a scene, could not resist tapping feet to the beat of the drums.
The drums reminded the crowd that, in the story and in life, the village is the heartbeat of a child.
Mama Lisa’s repetitive style of song allowed the children to quickly catch on, recite and remember the powerful lyrics, which included “Without my history, I’m nobody, and nobody will remember me,” an excerpt from the title song, “It Takes A Village.”
“Folktales are important to our history and need to be remembered,” Mama Lisa said as she concluded her presentation.
She gave a quick dedication to the late Saint Louis University Professor Dr. Barbara Woods in her closing speech, saying, “She told me, ‘Be yourself and do your own thing.’ She left us to be with the ancestors, but her spirit is here with us today.”
Mama Lisa credits Woods and Ron Himes of the St. Louis Black Repertory Company as her major sources of inspiration for becoming who she is and doing what she does. She was a student at SLU and a member of the Black Rep’s dance company in the 1980’s.
“Having those two people in my life at the same time was a foundation for me,” Mama Lisa said.
Her desire to create a foundation for other children, including hers, led her in 1995 to create Fundisha Enterprises. The name comes from a Kiswahili word that means “to teach.” At first, she taught 30 children out of her home on Saturdays and Sundays.
“There was a need that had to be addressed,” Mama Lisa said.
Along with her community efforts to celebrate the history and culture of Africa and Pan-Africa, Mama Lisa teaches dance in the Normandy School District and African history for Lindenwood University.
She also produces a cultural arts and education conference three times each year. Each conference focuses on a different region of Africa and/or Pan-Africa.
In the past, her conferences have featured Cuba, Haiti, Senegal and the Congo. For her upcoming conference in May, she has yet to select a location to highlight, but plans for the conference to compliment the St. Louis African Arts Festival.
These events always incorporate some teaching of the language of the culture under study. “It’s important to speak the language,” Mama Lisa said. “Returning to the language returns us to ourselves.”
For more information on Fundisha Enterprises, contact Mama Lisa at 582-2552.
