A cultural extravaganza that showcased various aspects of the rich traditions of the Gas was held last week at the elephant on moon centre in Accra.

Designed to expose the vibrant/energetic rhythms as well as colourful and expressive dance piece of the gas, the programme attracted people from diverse walks of life as well as a number of tourists.

Music and dance groups which participated in the event included Dza Nyonmo Dance Ensemble, Traditional Shakers Dance Ensemble, Damdi Dance Company, Mawuli Dance Ensemble, Vision Star Dancers and City Theatre Group

Traditional Shakers Dance Ensemble opened the evening with the pouring of libation and followed it with the ?Kple? dance, which forms part of the Ga homowo festival.

With wild rhythms flowing from diverse Ghanaian drums, Dza Nyonmo Dance Ensemble performed ?fume fume?, a famous Ga traditional dance that drew cheers and applause from the audience.

Full of enthusiasm, the city theatre group treated the crowd to a play based on the conflict between African and western cultures while appealing to Ghanaians to respect and appreciate their rich traditions.

A group of young dancers known as vision star dancers exhibited free--style dances that were characterized by well co-ordinated movements while popular Ghanaian music blared out speakers.

Mawuli Dance Ensemble introduced the crowd to baba, a traditional dance piece from the republic of Benin, which is characterized by energetic movements and ritualistic rhythms while the Damdi Dance Company performed ?Atsia?.

Elephant On Moon is a non-governmental organisation that offers a forum for the promotion of science, culture and the arts. Among other things its aims at encouraging the youth of Ghana to appreciate their cultural heritage.

The programme, which was sponsored by elephant on moon, was organised by Edward Dogbe, a prolific dancer and artistic director of Dza Nyonmo Dance Ensemble.