TTwo years ago, the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project’s all-day show took place Recovery attracted 7,000 fans to Millennium Park, marking the end of its three-year pilot program and the conclusion of the city’s Year of Chicago Dance initiative. Now, on August 24, the project will show if lightning can strike twice when it sets off another joy bomb at Pritzker Pavilion with its latest show. Divination: The Dancing Souls of the Blacks.

The subtitle alludes to an early 20th century text by WEB Du Bois about the African American experience. But CBDLP director Princess Mhoon says the project’s overarching goal is to redefine black dance as American dance – for everyone. “We are not separate,” says the veteran choreographer. “We can find our common humanity on stage, whether it’s in church, on your prayer rug, in your community or at a wedding.”

Fortune tellingwhich begins at 5:45 p.m., will include performances from all 10 local groups participating in the project’s latest incarnation. But they won’t be the only ones finding their groove. A pre-show DJ will entice attendees to dance on the lawn and in the aisles, while a commissioned finale will bring not only all of the CBDLP dancers but others from Chicago to the stage. “We hope to pack the house again,” says Mhoon. “People should know they’re coming to be part of a day of dance and not just to watch pieces.”

The participating groups this time represent a wider range of dance styles. Groups specializing in footwork, which emerged from Chicago’s house music scene, as well as tap dancing have also been added to the project. “There are still people who are completely unfamiliar with Chicago footwork,” says Jamal “Litebulb” Oliver, co-founder of Era Footwork Crew, a participating dance group. “The opportunity to showcase footwork in different venues is definitely valuable to us. When I was growing up, most people only participated in the Bud Billiken Parade.”

The CBDLP, a program of the University of Chicago’s Logan Center for the Arts, not only offers performances throughout the city but also provides support to participating ensembles, some of which are not as established as others. This may include guidance on obtaining funding, increasing audiences, or archiving performances (the project recently hired an archives specialist). The CBDLP also coordinates peer-to-peer support among the other participants.

“Everyone is trying to grow their business in one way or another,” says Makeda Crayton, executive director of Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, a dance company that blends African-American traditions and contemporary dance forms. Deeply Rooted, currently based in the Loop with Ballet Chicago, has launched an ambitious $15.6 million capital campaign to open a new dance center on the South Side. “With all these dance organizations, the performance aspect gets the most attention, and this other stuff falls by the wayside.”

Support in such matters is part of the philosophy that the tide lifts all boats permeates the CBDLP. “There’s an African saying: ‘I am because we are,'” says Emily Hooper Lansana, a senior administrative officer at the Logan Center. “When you’re at the helm of a black arts organization that has been able to sustain itself for decades, you have a strong spirit and survival skills.”

When Lansana moved to Chicago 30 years ago, “it felt like a place where you could have an idea and make it happen,” she says. The Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project is working to keep the harvest growing.