Afrofusion in the light of Feathers
by Alfred Hinkel, adds both gravitas and glee to the season.
Fight, flight, feathers, f***ers is a collaboration between MIDM’s 30-yearold Sunnyboy Motau and renowned British dancer/ choreographer Rachel Erdos. It explores the politics, psychology and physicality of masculinity and the fight or flight principle.
The work was originally commissioned by Dance Umbrella where it was among the top five works presented last year.
Motau is also a force to be reckoned with and was named one of the Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans last year. He was also nominated for a prestigious Naledi Award in the Sophie Mgcina Best New Emerging Voice category.
The second work on the programme is the globallyrecognised Road, a poetic and poignant duet – performed by Kurt Jooss Award-winning choreographer, Oscar Buthelezi, 25, alongside fellow MIDM dancer and rehearsal director, Muzi Shili.
The piece is about navigating to where we want to be and defining the route that guides us there. In a recent historical double win at the Kurt Jooss Awards held in Germany, Buthelezi became the first African choreographer to win the award and the first ever to take home both the Audience Choice and the prestigious Jury’s Choice awards.
Buthulezi was also named one of Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans for 2016.
The season closes with the much-loved Bolero, first created by Hinkel in Namaqualand in 1976, it focused on the Immorality Act.
This new version of Bolero contains choreographic input by dancers from MIDM, inspired by the work of at least four generations of Jazzart dancers, and is purely about the MIDM cast’s sensuality.
“We hope the programme at the festival will captivate and leave a lasting impression. The three piece performance will really give the audience a taste of what MIDM is capable of,” Hawkins added.