Cultural Identity & Dance | Alvaro Restrepo, Founder of The School of the Body in Cartagena, Colombia

In this interview with Alvaro Restrepo, he shares his personal story and insights on the history and traditions of local Colombian culture, including:

• An overview of dance and its cultural significance in Colombia
• Alvaro’s journey through North and South America and the influences on his career in dance
• The importance of continuing a cultural practice through educating youth
• How dance can be used to overcome racism, injustice and economic hardships in Colombia

Expected Learning Outcome:

This lesson includes clear expected learning outcomes that support students in understanding cultural identity through first-person perspectives, while building intercultural awareness and connections between individual experience and global traditions.

• Students will identify and describe key cultural practices and beliefs from the lesson’s focus community (i.e., Colombian culture).
• Students will articulate insights into their own cultural identities and how those identities relate to what they learned.
• Students will analyze how cultural expressions (like dance) reflect values, history, and social traditions.
• Students will compare perspectives across cultures while finding similarities and differences through human themes.
• Students will make connections between cultural traditions and broader global contexts (dance, racism, injustice), showing critical thinking about identity and intercultural understanding.