For the latest in our World in London series, we put on our dancing shoes and spoke to Deanna Michel-de Sousa, leader of African performing arts ensemble Nzinga Dance, which teaches African drumming and dance at south London’s Horniman Museum

What does Nzinga Dance do?

Our main remit is bringing African history, culture and tradition to life – telling its story with dance and music. The classes are about coming along and learning traditional dance and drumming – and about their importance in African culture – but in a fun and creative way.

We do lots of performances at the museum and elsewhere too – for Refugee Week, Adult Learners’ Week, at summer festivals… We’re not just at the Horniman!

Are all the Nzinga teachers Ghanaian?

There’s a mixture of people, mainly Ghanaian and a couple of us from St Lucia – the one person that isn’t is from Pakistan, so there you go! We’re an African-Caribbean group but a lot of what we teach and perform is from Ghana.

Ghanaian dance is a big part of what we do. In terms of African dance culture, Ghana has prolific dancers and musicians. You have one country but within that country so many different nations – whether it’s Ewe, Ashanti or Ga – and each has their own style. You find literally hundreds of dances and that’s what’s quite unique about Ghanaian dance and drumming – there’s a lot to learn and pick from as well. So within one course, we may say to people we’re teaching Ghanaian dance but that can include completely different styles.

Who comes to your dance classes? Ghanaians living in London or a mixture of people?

We get a mix of people, although we do have Ghanaian students who come along that haven’t learnt so much about their culture in that respect and just feel that they really want to touch base and learn.  It’s nice that people want to come along – both Ghanaian and non-Ghanaian – and learn about African culture in a creative way, and in a really social atmosphere.

What do your students think about the course?

Most of them say they enjoy coming along because it’s a non-competitive atmosphere and they feel that what they’re learning is authentic. We can be specific – we can say you’ve learnt Kpanlogo dance from this place in Ghana – and they like that feeling of knowing what they’ve been taught and the significance of it in history and culture. For example, that when I’m dancing this step, it means this or that.

I think we get lots of students, too, because of the live drumming [the djembe drummers who accompany the dance classes]. Not knocking anyone who uses a CD, but I think it being authentic is a big part of drawing people. I think that’s why we’re still going strong.

See Nzinga Dance (and their students) perform at the Nzinga Dance Ensemble Concert on 27 March 2011 at Horniman Museum. The next term of Nzinga dance and drumming courses for adults and children at Horniman Museum begin on 1 May 2011.

Do you know anywhere else you can experience Ghanaian culture in London? Let us know in the comments below.

London is home to many people from the small South American country of Guyana, but there are few indicators beyond the odd Guyanese takeaway (think delicious hot curries and roti bread) or famous figure – be it reggae star Eddie Grant or former Southbank Centre writer-in-residence John Agard.

However, venture into the south London pocket of Stockwell and into Stockwell Memorial Gardens and you’ll find another piece of Guyana – a 10-foot bronze sculpture of a woman holding a child. It’s a powerful image, not least because of its fascinating history.

The first public statue of a black woman in England, Bronze Woman was the brainchild of a black woman: Guyanese poet and local resident Cécile Nobrega.

Based on and named after her own poem, Bronze Woman took 10 years of planning, fundraising and determination by Nobrega and other groups and individuals who wanted to mark the struggles faced by Afro-Caribbean women, as well as their contribution to society.

The statue was designed by renowned sculptor Ian Walters, whose many famous London sculptures include the Nelson Mandela statue next to the Royal Festival Hall.

Sadly Walters died before the project was completed. But the project was picked up by London-based sculptor-artist Aleix Barbat, then a final-year sculpture student at Heatherley’s School of Fine Art.

Eventually, on 8 October 2008 – during Black History Month – the sculpture was unveiled, with the help of the then 89-year-old Nobrega.

Do you know anywhere else you can find a bit of Guyana in London? Tell us in the comments below.

Facing a devastating drought, a desperate Mayan king is torn between seeking personal power and pleasing the Gods. Amid this disaster, two brothers compete to follow their dying father’s instructions and embark on a quest, discovering along the way what’s worth living for – and dying for.

Katy Lipson from new musical theatre initiative A Stage Kindly, the organisation behind the production, says:

“This is a unique and very exciting work, and from the moment we first heard it we knew we were on to a winner. With its contemporary score and strong Mayan theme, MAYA is entirely different from previous productions.”

You can catch the UK premiere of MAYA, written by American Rick Williams, at The Baron’s Court Theatre, an intimate subterranean theatre below The Curtains Up pub.

After discovering Guatemala’s history, explore its present in a powerful retrospective of work by Guatemalan artist Regina José Galindo at ROLLO Contemporary Art gallery near Goodge Street.

This exhibition shows that while the Mayan civilisation perished long ago, violence and political power games remain a part of life in Guatemala. Works on show include Galindo’s unsettling video-performance piece No perdemos nada con nacer (We don’t lose anything by being born) 2000, in which the artist was self drugged, put in a clear plastic bag, placed in a bin and left at the local rubbish dump.

MAYA is on at The Barons Court Theatre from 24-30 Jan. Regina José Galindo is on at ROLLO Contemporary Art until 11 Feb.

Last week, Tate Britain re-opened its Clore Galleries following a major re-hang of its Romantics collection.

We couldn’t think of a better showcase for Great Britain in our World In London series than this stunning collection, featuring more than 170 paintings exploring British romantic art.

JMW Turner, John Constable, William Blake and Samuel Palmer are among the greats whose work is on display and entry is completely free.

You can even see a few romantic representations of London as I spotted a painting of Greenwich Park by Turner and of Hampstead Heath by Constable.

Romantics at Tate Britain until 31 December 2012

Do you have any other suggestions for seeing something classically British in London? Add your thoughts to the comments below.

You can experience Greek culture in London without leaving your house: just listen to London Greek Radio on 103.3FM.

Or online at www.lgr.co.uk.

Based on the High Road in North Finchley, London Greek Radio (LGR) has been playing Greek music and broadcasting news from the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) since the 1980s.

LGR started life as a pirate radio station back in 1983, for a predominantly Greek Cypriot audience. It’s been on air as a legit FM station since 13 November 1989. Recently, LGR have started having more English speaking DJs, but continue to play the same Greek music.

We spoke to one of the founders, musician George Gregoriou about this piece of Greece in London.

“One of my friends was running an English pirate radio station back in the 80s when I said to him, ‘Why don’t you play some Greek music?’

“And he said ‘Where will I find Greek music?’ So I lent him some records, and we started playing Greek music. We rang the factories and the shops we knew with Greek-speaking workers, and said listen, we’re on this station, playing Greek music.

“They said, ‘Greek music? Oh, OK!’ And they rang their friends. And they rang their families. And soon we had a big radio station.

“There are 300,000 Greek speakers in London. Now I’m not saying they’re all listening all the time, but I think most of them are listening for a couple of hours here and there! It’s not just Greek people, but English, Jews, Serbians, Turkish Cypriots, people from the Balkans…

“And the English-speaking listeners can learn Greek through the station. Every Monday, we upload a new “Learn Greek By Radio” link to the website. It gets about 75 thousand views a month…

Does George have a favourite DJ?

“All of them play… each one is… Listen, the young ones are suitable for the young, the older ones are suitable for the older…! There’s something for everyone. I can’t say I prefer Paul, or Tony or Akis or Andreas… or anyone!

“The change to having more shows with speaking in English and Greek songs has been a positive one. We’re definitely going in that direction: music in Greek, DJs in English.

“Our plan is to go to satellite. One day, you’ll be able to listen to LGR all over the world.”

Any more tips for enjoying Greek culture in London? Leave your ideas in the comments below!

Continuing our World in London series, we asked ex-VLer Eileen Geibig (who has sadly for us returned to Germany) where she used to go for a taste of home.

Eileen pointed us in the direction of the German Deli in Borough Market:

“They sell Bratwurst with Sauerkraut at the market – to die for! I recommend a type of sausage called Nuernberger Rostbratwuerstchen that you can buy there. They are tiny sausages with lots of herbs and funnily taste even better with English Colman’s mustard.”

Do you agree that German Deli serves the best Bratwurst in London? We’d love to hear your ideas about Germany in London.