A Visa-Vise: The Suspense of Les Ballets Africains’ 12-City US Tour
A Visa-Vise, or “Visa-Vice”… Black History Month opens on a sour note as Les Ballets Africains’ 12‑city US tour is stalled due to the US consulate’s continued refusal to grant visas.
In a dubious start to Black History Month, the highly anticipated 12-city, ten-state tour by Les Ballets Africains has been put into limbo by the ongoing refusal of the US consulate to approve visas for the celebrated West African dance and drumming ensemble.
The February tour was announced long before a January 2026 executive order that largely banned visas for designated countries, including Guinea, where Les Ballets Africains is the national dance company. Press accounts indicate that even after Guinea provided the ensemble with official government passports, the US embassy in Guinea still has not issued visas. The visas have not been denied, but are in “administrative hold,” placing the visa applications and the tour in suspense.
As a result, the initial performances at two theatres in Florida were cancelled. With hope the visas would be issued and the tour would go forward, the two California theatres in Santa Barbara and Malibu held out until two days before the scheduled shows before announcing their cancellation. New Mexico was the next to cancel. As the calendar approaches the remaining venues, the company has no word on the visas’ status and remains in a state of uncertainty. The remaining theatres in Colorado, Missouri, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Connecticut have not yet cancelled the shows, but the venues are cautioning ticket purchasers about the uncertainty, which is not likely to boost sales.
Originally formed in 1952 by Guinean choreographer Keita Fodeba, Les Ballets Africains toured internationally from a base in Paris until Guinean independence in 1958, when Les Ballets Africains became the country’s national dance company. From its home country, the ensemble continued as ambassadors of African dance, music, and culture, touring the world and the US, including performances on Broadway. The company’s history and international recognition may explain the reluctance to simply cancel the tour as well as the efforts to expedite approval of the visas.
Beyond efforts through official channels, a grassroots campaign has sprouted on social media. Southern California, in particular, has a raft of West African dance and drumming groups, and many credit Les Ballets Africains for both building an audience and igniting performers to form local West African dance and drumming ensembles. Many of those local artists are emailing the US Embassy in Guinea, where the visas are in administrative limbo, urging the Consul General to approve the visas so the rest of the tour might be salvaged.
Les Ballets Africains is only one of the situations of international artists encountering similar visa obstructions. Still, the timing of the visa denial of internationally acclaimed African artists during the US-designated Black History Month is particularly bad optics, and can only add to worries for visitors to the US for the upcoming World Cup matches and Olympic events.
For more information Les Ballets Africains
Ann Haskins has written about dance and theatre for L.A. Weekly since shortly after it began publishing in 1978. She has also written about local and national dance for Pointe Magazine, Dance Spirit Magazine, Dance Teacher Magazine, Los Angeles Magazine, L.A. View, Coast Magazine, the Daily News, and the Herald Examiner.
Among her broadcast projects, Ann hosted Inside Theater on KCRW-FM and contributed dance and theater features to both KLON-FM and KUSC-FM. She has twice received Horton Awards from the Los Angeles Dance Resource Center for her coverage of dance in Los Angeles and received the Los Angeles Dance Festival award for Raising the Visibility of Dance.
