SOUND clip from "Samoa Tutoatasi" made in 1982. Directed by Doug Seelig, produced and donated by Summer Banner. Narration is in the Samoan language. This clip features the traditional Samoan dance known as taualuga. This is a solo dance performance usually done by the daughter and sometimes the son of a chief, accompanied by singers and comic dancers. The singers sit in rows, are directed by a conductor and accompanied by simple percussion. To emphasize the grace of the solo performer, the other dancers will jest with comic outcries and exaggerated movements. The elegance of the dancer's subtle gestures is central to this performance. Often money is gifted to the dancer as an acknowledgement of talent and prestige. The taualuga dance is performed in various contexts but usually at the end of a celebration or social function. The word taualuga translates from Samoan as the final stage of building a fale or traditional house, it signifies completion of a monumental undertaking. This film is housed in the National Anthropological Film Collection (formerly the Human Studies Film Archives) in the National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
Video Duration:
1 min 42 sec
YouTube Keywords:
archival historical educational film video anthropology archeology parks ethnographic history culture "cultural geography" "heritage sites" 16mm architecture transportation
