A Slippery Rock University dance faculty member is bringing knowledge and understanding of Colombian culture to a brand-new stage. Melissa Teodoro, a professor of dance, conducted dance ethnography research in Colombia on the banks of the Magdalena River, yielding exciting new creative projects and scholarly works that she is sharing at SRU and the dance community throughout western Pennsylvania.
“I’ve been fascinated with Colombian dance and music for over 30 years,” said Teodoro. “Colombia was my go-to when I was doing my research, but the river has really captured my attention over the last few years.”
Teodoro was able to expand her research after she earned the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar award for the 2024-25 academic year.
During her 2025 spring sabbatical, Teodoro traveled down the Magdalena River, spanning the length of the country, documenting aspects of the cultural lives of communities living on the banks. Her journey down the river gave her an understanding of its importance in Colombian culture with Teodoro developing the impression that the river itself carries the history of the nation.
“I was immersed in life on and around the river, so that allowed me to talk to fishermen and ladies who wash their clothes and cook on the river as well as historians and dancers and architects,” said Teodoro. “Those interactions helped me to see how dance is connected to the river.”
After conducting her field research, Teodoro authored her paper “Rio: Dancing Down the Magdalena,” explaining the various dances and festivals that were associated with different areas of the river.
Teodoro presented her research at the SRU Faculty Research Symposium. The paper then informed the upcoming dance concert, “Yuma,” a performance that Teodoro will be choreographing, which will feature SRU dance students. “Yuma” will be performed at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center in Pittsburgh this March. More details will be posted to the AWAACC website once plans are finalized.
“Yuma” is inspired by the same path that Teodoro did when she sailed the river, starting at its widest, northernmost point and culminating at the narrow southernmost extremity, framing this movement as the birth, life and death of the river. It will feature pieces choreographed in the styles that Teodoro found in her travels.
The performers in “Yuma” are comprised of members of “Palenque,” the touring Afro-Colombian dance ensemble at SRU for which Teodoro serves as artistic director.
“Palenque was founded about 13 years ago, and at that point my research was very separate from my teaching, but a few dance majors expressed interest in my research,” Teodoro said. “Then some more students became interested and it organically evolved into a touring company.”
The core of Teodoro’s scholarly and creative work is to expose people to cultures that they may not have previously known about, and in Teodoro’s view, there is no better way to understand culture than through dance. According to Teodoro, one can truly see the embodiment of a culture through dance.