Part of the now famous Brooklyn Museum exhibit of Haitian Art in 1978, this 20 min video documentary was screened in a plexiglass theater with a wall of monitors in the middle of the galleries with the paintings and sculptures.  Ra-Ra is an Easter week celebration in Haiti embracing traditional vodou ceremonies, music-making and dance  that dates back to slavery.

The spirit of Ra-Ra resides in its traditional music and dance. Preparations begin on Ash Wednesday with instrument and costume making.  Bands and dancers begin traveling the roads as the ceremonies and celebrations build to a climax on Easter weekend.

Much of the music centers around the vaccine. Made from different lengths of bamboo, the vaccine is both a wind and percussion instrument.

The traditional metal trumpets, batons and scrapers of Ra-Ra are made from recycled metal in the famous Iron Market in downtown Port-au-Prince.

At voodou ceremonies in several different communities around Haiti.  The houngan — voodou priest — invokes the spirits to protect the Ra-Ra bands as they travel the roads, through villages and towns.  We see the houngans drawing veves – intricate geometric shapes –on the temple floors.  Each spirit is represented by its own particular veve.

Much of the music-making and flat-footed belly-centered dancing, the sequined costumes and baton twirling can be traced to western Africa.  The houngans lead their congregants in prayers to invoke the spirits’ protection and the chorus sings songs filled with political satire.

Then they’re off!  The Ra-Ra band and dancers leave the hounfer to shimmy down the road, stopping to perform before people’s homes.

On Eastern Sunday Ra-Ra bands from all over the country converge at Carrefor de for, before dancing on to Leogane, partying late into the night.