“I started the Rafiki Ensemble to give a platform to the youth to express themselves, find courage, share love and better their lives while experiencing and being part of African dance and song.” – Kalungi Abubaker, Team Leader/Founder

Experience the awakening of African traditional heritage in a new and modern way with the talented young performers of the Rafiki Ensemble. Representing different world cultures, the members of the ensemble are passionate about African dance and music and pride themselves in emphasizing their commonalities and celebrating their rich differences.

The troupe is called Rafiki to bring to light the joyous, uniting, empowering, and uplifting nature of African cultural dance and music. Away from sharing the rich African heritage, the group uses dance, songs, and storytelling to sensitize and educate the masses, handling themes like domestic violence, health and drugs, governance, and family.

It’s where a 5-year-old girl discovers that she’s an artist, a 70-year-old man discovers he’s a musician, a 35-year-old woman learns ballet and a family grows stronger by sharing the stage together.

It’s the banquet hall where Anna married Luis. It’s the meeting room where Jennifer launched her career. It’s the stage where Oliver found a family and a Music Man traded swindling for love.

The Carrollwood Cultural Center is much more than a building. It’s the place where strangers become friends and friends become family.

Above all, it’s a place where a community came together to prove—and continue to prove–that ordinary citizens can, through their labors and generosity, determine the culture of the place in which they live ou their lives.

For more information about the Center and its programming, visit CarrollwoodCenter.org.