For the last 30 years, Potpourri: An African American Performance Showcase has brought people together through music, rhythm and dance — celebrating the vibrancy of African American culture at IU Bloomington.
Presented by the African American Art Institute — a creative wing of the African American and African Diasporas Studies department — Potpourri is a collaborative recital between IU Soul Revue, the African American Dance Company and the African American Choral Ensemble. The annual concert series took a break last year, but Potpourri of the Arts is set to return to the stage at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 15 at the IU Auditorium at IU Bloomington.
“Each ensemble really is an independent group that has its own kind of life and career performance schedule and all of that,” said Raymond Wise, executive director of the African American Arts Institute and Choral Ensemble. “But in the fall, we all come together and do one big performance at the IU Auditorium, and it showcases African American music and dance.”
The IU Soul Revue, African American Dance Company and African American Choral Ensemble were each founded within a few years of each other in the 1970s, and Wise said they decided to host a gala to celebrate the half-century milestone with the community instead of their regular performance last year.
The IU Soul Revue, created in 1971, is currently led by Professor James Strong. The ensemble is an ode to Black popular music and regularly performs R&B, jazz, hip hop with singers, a band and a horn section.
The African American Dance Company, founded in 1974, is led by Professor Stafford C. Berry Jr., and focuses on dance and creative movement from African diasporic traditions.
Led by Wise, the African American Choral Ensemble, founded in 1975, exclusively performs works by Black composers, including spirituals, jazz, blues and gospel.
Each of the ensembles is a for-credit class. The annual fall performance of Potpourri is one of the African American Art Institute’s signature events, Wise said.
This year, Potpourri: An African American Performance Showcase honors the three ensembles’ return to the stage with the theme of “Together Again.” This idea pays homage to both the break they took last year and the return to a new “normal” as DEI is stripped from universities across the country, Wise said.
“The idea of together again is the notion of letting the community know we’re back together. We’re back here to celebrate,” Wise said. “But even at this point, in terms of what we do; the climate, of how things are going in the world, it’s so important that we say, ‘Let’s be together. Let’s work together. Let’s strive together to make sure that we can continue to do the work that we’re doing.’ Because in so many areas, this work has been under threat.”
One of the unique aspects of Potpourri is that many of the students involved are not music, art or dance majors. Tsehai Bean is an advertising major and told the Recorder she joined the African American Choral Ensemble as a freshman.
Now a senior, Bean said Potpourri offers non-arts majors the opportunity to engage with the arts, while learning about the behind-the-scenes work of putting together a large-scale collaborative showcase.
“In previous years, it’s been very hectic, I think, when it comes to creating something so grand,” Bean said. “But it’s a really good experience.”
When people think of the word “potpourri,” they typically picture a blend of dried florals and spices that “cultivate something beautiful,” and Bean said that allusion is representative of what the African American Art Institute aims to do.
With the exception of 2024, Bean said she has enjoyed getting to know students from “different walks of life,” learning music in other languages, and watching the other ensembles rehearse before coming together for the performance.
“It’s just really cool that everyone has that same purpose and that same message — where it’s spreading African American culture through the arts, and honestly, just having a great time,” Bean said. “It’s family-oriented, and we all work really, really hard. I think it’s like a testament to how we’ve been oppressed in the past, and how we’re able to create something so beautiful through celebrating our culture and our history.”
Collectively, the students and educators involved with Potpourri realized that they have the power to change the world through the art they make, and Wise said he wants audience members to leave encouraged, inspired and with a sense of hope.
“We really have a key that can make a difference in the world,” Wise said. “People don’t always listen to words; they’re not always moved by the words that we say, but if you can get people in a place and they hear a song, or they see a dance, or they see some kind of visual presentation of art, it moves people in different ways.”
Potpourri: An African American Performance Showcase begins at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 15 at the IU Auditorium at IU Bloomington, 1211 E. 7th St., Bloomington, IN. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for students. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit iuauditorium.com/events/detail/potpourri-2025.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
Chloe McGowan is the Arts & Culture Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. Originally from Columbus, OH, Chloe has a bachelor's in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is a former IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, and has previously worked for Indy Maven, The Lantern, and CityScene Media Group. In her free time, Chloe enjoys live theatre, reading, baking and keeping her plants alive.
