25 > 29.06.18
La Commune – centre dramatique national
Born in Mutare (Zimbabwe), Nora Chipaumire moved to New York after studying dance in Africa, Cuba and Jamaica. Ever since her first piece in 2003, Chimurenga, her work has deconstructed stereotypes of the black body and examined its emancipation on the stage. Often drawing on her private life, her pieces (Dark Swan, Portrait of Myself as my Father, Rite Riot...) have won her a number of prizes in the USA, including three Bessie Awards. She has also carried out research at University, in partnership with prestigious American institutions.
NHAKA Practice & Process
For a good ten years, Nora Chipaumire has been developing a technique, or physical manifesto, which she calls Nhaka – literally “patrimony, heritage” in Shona, the language of Zimbabwe. It brings in dances from her native country and, more generally, from the continent of Africa, to create a distinct language, a contemporary form of African dance, with no reference to ballet or Western modern dance. This is what she intends to experiment with during this workshop. After an apprenticeship of sequences from her repertory, and a synthesis of the various concepts she works with, the participants will create an original composition and be led to think about and discuss the development of a Dance Literacy, or the “alphabetisation” of dance.
companychipaumire.com