Mkpokiti Dance was founded in 1959 by the late Chief Festus Okoli Nwankwo of Ugwunano village of Umunze in Orumba Local Government Area of present day Anambra State in the defunct Eastern Region.
In 1970, immediately after the genocidal civil war, all the States of the Nigerian federation were summoned in Lagos to celebrate the end of the civil war.
Among the programmes lined up for the celebrations was a cultural dance competition among all the States. Three thousand British Pounds (#3,000) and a gold gong were prizes for the first place in the cultural dances.
The competition started from the villages to the divisions and to the States. From village level to the national stage, Mkpokiti secured first position and won the coveted gold gong and cash prize in Lagos.
This stimulated other dance groups in the country, with the result that in 1971, many dance groups registered for the competition. The final competition for the year took place in Ibadan and Mkpokiti maintained the lead.
In 1972 – 1973 in Kaduna, the case was the same. Since inception, the Mkpokiti dance group never obtained a second position in any competition.
The Old Anambra State government was to formally choose Mkpokiti as its State Dance. But after the continuous clinching of first position in national competitions, the federal government decided that Mkpokiti was better adopted as a National Dance.
Mkpokiti represented the federal government in FESTAC ’77 in Lagos. From New York, Washington, Jamaica, Barbados, Brazil, Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Port of Spain to England, Mkpokiti Dance has been exhibited as the greatest cultural dance in Africa.
The Satinsheen Company under the management of Miss Franca Afebua, took Mkpokiti dance to a global competition in Wembley, England. All the groups competed at theOxford University, England. As expected, Mkpokiti Dance troupe secured the 1st prize there and carried the World Cup back to Nigeria.
The federal government has taken Mkpokiti dance group to ALL THE PARTS OF THE WORLD except Australia. The achievements made in these travels, including winning the World Cup multiple times, even in New York, Algeria and North Korea, a few years ago rightly crowned the legendary Mkpokiti dance of Igbo people the great.
They’re regarded as the greatest cultural dance group in the universe. They were featured on the back of #5 note as an honor.
Written by Etodike with minor editing and headline by Daily Query
