Pro dancer brings class act to Guild
TO mark their 20th anniversary, Mozambique's first contemporary dance company ‘CulturArte” is bringing their outstanding tour to the Guild Theatre next weekend.
CulturArte, a leading institution for dance in Mozambique, was founded by internationally-renowned choreographer and dancer Panaibra Gabriel Canda.
The dance company provides support for new creations and performances, artistic development and training programmes for dance projects and Southern African artists.
The tour forms part of The Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia Winter Programme, which will be celebrating 20 years in South Africa.
The tour includes a collaborative double bill by acclaimed Swiss choreographer Thomas Hauert, whose company ZOO, also joins hands in celebrating their own 20-year milestone this year.
Pro Helvetia Programme Manager, Rucera Seethal. said the enduring 60-minute dance solo explores a crisis of identity and deconstructs cultural representations of a “pure” African body.
“Accompanied by guitarist, Jorge Domingos, Canda dances and speaks about today's African body: a post-colonial, plural body that has absorbed the ideals of nationalism, modernity, socialism and freedom of expression,” said Seethal.
The Marrabenta Solos will journey through Mozambique's complex history, a feature carried in the Marrabenta – a musical form born in the 1950s from a mix of Mozambican and European influences.
The tour is supported by the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
The tour starts on July 7.