Dance of desperation a thought-provoking take on SA

BREAKING BORDERS Dance Forum/Tumbuka Dance Company/Unmute Dance Company Great Hall until today.

This is a dance of desperation, of starvation, as there are no jobs. The dancers, one in a wheelchair, come together and part with their arms in the air, pleading to God for work. They clash and roll around on the floor; they are angry with the world and angry with each other. Their dancing is fast and furious, sometimes kind, but mostly angry.

On the background film you see desperate men all crowded together. Then there is a riot, one dancer portraying the police with a large stick and all the dancers falling to the floor dead, except one girl, who finds a bucket of water and washes her hands in desperation, then washes the hands of the dead. There is a sad song, a cry for help, but no help comes. Then Mandela’s voice cries out: “Humility is one of the most important qualities one must have.”

Gradually the dancers rise from the floor, but there is still no peace. One is necklaced and writhes around with the tyre around his neck, then falls still. The others hide behind the security fence, afraid of life and afraid of each other. All is still. This dance portrays South Africa and Africa in a thought-provoking way. You see what we have lived through, and what we are still living through, for decades. It is a must-see. The emotion on stage is palpable and thought-provoking.

They received a standing ovation.