There are other dance shows, ‘And Then ...’ there is this

AN UNFORGETTABLE performance inspired by the praying mantis, jackï job’s latest dance production, And Then ..., is heading to Artscape

And Then …, the latest iteration in an award-winning dance series, opens at the Artscape Arena Theatre in late November.

jackï job (who favours a lower case spelling of her name) is an accomplished artist and lecturer at UCT’s dance and drama department.

She isknown for constantly raising the bar of contemporary dance performance. Her dance series And Then… began in 2018.

It has taken on many forms – each one planting the seed for the next – including a film that aired during lockdown in 2020. And Then … was nominated for a Naledi Theatre Award and won the UCT Meritorious Award for Creative Works in 2022.

In concert with her long-standing collaborator, José Dias, she creates innovative, organic performances that have riveted and moved people all over the world.

Dias said in this version of And Then ..., he and job will be exploring the relationship between the human, animal and mechanised worlds.

“These ideas are carried into both the dance and piano aspects of the performance. In addition, I will be using an upright piano for this version, which will be prepared in the style of John Cage. For me, the praying mantis evokes a sense of timelessness.”

And Then … is an organic journey of desire, compassion, acceptance and love. Deeply personal, for both the audience and the performers, it allows each individual to develop their own very intimate interpretation of their work.

This isn’t jobs’s first collaboration with Dias.

“We worked internationally on an opera concert, called African Angels, that played in opera houses and theatres in Europe for a number of years. José Dias was the musical cirector,and I was the director and choreographer,” she said.

When asked about her future projects, job said she would be releasing a book.

“I am writing a book that will be released by Bloomsbury Publishing in the UK next year. This monograph traces 24 choreographies performed over a period of 27 years, and explicates my unique methodologies and philosophies of performance. I also plan to perform Ai next year. This is the show I performed earlier this year, where I danced with a horse,” she said.

Former Fleur du Cap awards judge Neil Roux, said: “All I can say is that the show is something you’ve never seen before. It’s two artists creating magic. You don’t want to miss this.”

There will be performances daily at 8pm, plus an additional matinée performance at 3pm on Saturday, December 2.

Tickets available on Webtickets.

JACKÏ job in collaboration with Jose Dias. Supplied