Step Afrika! Fills Arena Stage in Washington, DC With Rhythm in the World Premiere of The Fruits of Our Labor

Anyone who has felt a step show shake the stands knows the power of a stomp, a clap, and a line moving as one. This fall, Step Afrika! is bringing that power to one of the biggest stages in the nation’s capital, and we at Watch The Yard could not be more excited about it.

The Fruits of Our Labor, the company’s first world premiere since 2020, is now running at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in Washington, D.C. The production opened September 10 on the Fichandler Stage and runs through November 1, 2026. Created as America marks 250 years, the show uses stepping, song, and percussion to explore the labor, endurance, and beliefs that built this country, and it asks a question that hits home for so many in our community: “What have we inherited and what are we still fighting to become?”

The work is directed by Jakari Sherman with Conrad R. Kelly II and Vusi Mdoyi. Sherman is no stranger to Arena Stage audiences, having directed Step Afrika!’s acclaimed productions The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence and Drumfolk. This time, he says the dancers are carrying the entire sound of the show.

“I am exploring sound, music, and movement with the dancers in rich, new ways,” Sherman said. “Step Afrika! will be both the dance and the music as we fill the stage with explosive and intricate rhythms.”

The show draws inspiration from Isithukuthuku, a 2024 work by Mdoyi, a Johannesburg-based artist who turns the sounds of industrial labor into percussive soundscapes. Woven throughout are striking visuals and the words of Phillis Wheatley, Frederick Douglass, and Langston Hughes, giving the rhythm a voice that stretches across generations of Black American history.

Fourteen Step Afrika! company members bring the premiere to life: Kwadjo Bediako, Nya Christian, Jerod Coleman, Ariel Dykes, Terrence Johnson, Conrad R. Kelly II, Jayden King, Jemeema S. Montrose, Keondre Pascal, Keanu Powell, Ericka Still, Joseph Vasquez, Pelham Warner Jr., and Robert Warnsley, joined by guest artist Agyei Keita Edwards.

For Step Afrika! Founder and Executive Producer C. Brian Williams, the premiere is a celebration of everything the company has built over more than 30 years.

“Step Afrika! reminds us that every movement carries history, every rhythm tells a story, and every voice has the power to contribute to something greater than itself,” Williams said in a statement.

And yes, the yard is invited. D9 & Friends Night takes place Wednesday, Oct 14 at 7:30PM. Use code DIVINE for $40 tickets.  Rep your letters and enjoy the show with the Black fraternity and sorority community. General tickets start at $47 at arenastage.org/fruits.

Since 1994, Step Afrika! has carried the percussive traditions of historically African American fraternities and sororities to audiences in more than 60 countries, blending them with traditional African dance and contemporary art forms. Every time this company takes the stage, it shows the world what our community has always known: stepping is art, history, and storytelling all at once.