YOUNGSTOWN — Old Fort Niagara will host its third annual Smoke Dance competition, Native Nations at Niagara, on Saturday. The Smoke Dance was originally a Haudenosaunee war dance, primarily danced by men, but has expanded within competition dance to include and highlight female dancers.
The fort will be welcoming local and national competitors to dance throughout the day. Visitors will be able to watch as dancers compete for prizes, learn about traditional and historic Native regalia, and talk to the interpretive staff about the connection that Fort Niagara has to the Haudenosaunee and other Native communities during the fort’s almost 300-year history. Visitors will also be able to peruse a variety of native crafters, artisans and food vendors.
The program begins at 10:45 a.m. with a presentation about the fort’s proposed Native American Education Center.
Musket firing demonstrations take place at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
At 11:15 a.m. voyageurs will discuss the operation of the fur trade on the Great Lakes.
Round one of the Smoke Dance competition will begin at noon. This will be followed at 2:15 p.m. by a Hoop Dance demonstration.
Round two of the Smoke Dance competition begins at 3 p.m. and a second hoop dance demonstration will be offered at 4:15 p.m.
Winners of the Smoke Dance competition will be announced at 4:45 p.m.
Several stories have evolved around the naming of the Smoke Dance, according to Robert Emerson, executive director of Old Fort Niagara. In one story, the dancers’ fast spinning in small circles is believed to emulate the curling of smoke. Another story revolves around Haudenosaunee longhouses. In these dwellings, smoke would sometimes linger. To help the smoke dissipate dancers would try to “chase” the wafts of smoke through the hole in the ceiling by swiftly dancing in circles in an attempt to push the smoke up out of the house.
While dancers appear to move effortlessly, the world of Haudenosaunee dance is complex. Each dance is dependent upon different drumbeats, different chants and specific foot movements that each individual dancer can interpret into their own style.
“Old Fort Niagara would like to stress our gratitude to the participants and visitors for facilitating the sharing of Native cultures and knowledge. These perspectives have historically been overlooked and undervalued,” Emerson said, “and we look forward to continued collaboration with our local Indigenous communities to reinforce the importance of the Haudenosaunee’s historical presence at the fort.”
Native Nations at Niagara will be ongoing from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the dance competition going from noon until 4 p.m.
The event received support from the New York State Council on the Arts and Northwest Bank.