After criticism of a costume show that was perceived as clichéd, an Awo dance group has now performed at Europa-Park in Rust – without compromising on the outfit. The performance was well received by the audience today, and the dancers received a lot of applause.
The demonstration was originally planned for the Federal Garden Show in Mannheim, where it had previously led to a dispute about cultural appropriation. Those responsible for Buga had expressed concerns about the costumes, which would have served too many cultural stereotypes, it said.
After the Buga show was initially on the brink, the show then reached a compromise with the Arbeiterwohlfahrt group (Awo): Changes were agreed on three of the originally six costumes that were the subject of the complaint. In addition, the performances are to be accompanied by discussion events.
In Europa-Park, the seniors presented their show in their original costumes even before their appearance at the Buga – in doing so, they followed an offer from the amusement park. The criticized costumes are supposed to symbolize certain countries in the show – for example, a dance with black wigs and kimonos is symbolic of Japan, sombreros and ponchos are supposed to be reminiscent of Mexico.
