Time is racing by and there is so much I would like to see and do here. But our focus is on dance, dance and more dance and so far we have not been at all disappointed with the work. Our colleagues Ken Foster from Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, Philip Bither from the Walker Arts Center in Minneapolis, Vivian Philips from Seattle Theater Group and Shay Wafer from 651 ARTS in NY  have all arrived. Sadly our friend Joan Frosch must leave today.

I started the day with a much needed walk around the neighborhood. Despite the heat and humidity it felt great to take a brisk walk as we have been doing way too much sitting and my body is complaining vociferously. We dancers know when our psoas is unhappy!

We gathered for a lunch meeting at The Lucky Bean to discuss next steps with our Africa Consortium partners. The conversation among this group is always rigorous, thoughtful and full of heart. I am honored to be in the mix, to have these extraordinary opportunities to come to Africa and to collaborate with my peers to learn, discover, support and present contemporary choreographers from across the continent.

Joan Frosch, me and Philip Bither at the Lucy Bean

We continued our meeting with Neli Xaba, Boyzie Cekwana and Gregory Maqoma over at the Dance Forum the home of Dance Umbrella and Vuyani Dance Theatre. Three of the most important dance organizations in Joburg (Dance Forum, Dance Factory and Moving Into Dance) have spaces side by side  across the park from the Market Theatre in a sort of arts district. This area has been greatly enhanced over the last several years and more improvements appears to be underway.

During our meeting we had a chance to hear about the recent activities of these affiliate artists and what has be going on vis a vis support for dance. For some the National Arts Lottery has been a god sent.  Gregory’s company, for example, has received a three year span of support as has PJ Sabbagha’s Hidden Angle Collaborative. Others are not so fortunate and struggle to make and show work. As with life, politics are unavoidably present coursing through the conversation.  Artists are deeply frustrated by the lack of support, understanding and infrastructure for the field. There is no mechanism for touring, few opportunities to perform in their home countries or across the continent and few options for developing new work. Yet things are better in South Africa than in many other places on the continent and artists persevere finding ways to realize their projects. Our American artists could learn some things from these resourceful and determined art makers.

What strikes me most about the work of African contemporary artists is how deeply grounded and informed it is by harsh realities of everyday life — violence, injustice and corruption. The desire to expose, comment and create change is a profound thread coursing through much of their work. The more I learn about the lives of these individuals and the conditions in which they are working the more my respect and admiration grows and the more committed I become to their artistic voices.

This is especially true of the women for whom being an artist requires incredible grit and determination. Unlike in the states, here men dominate dance and outnumber women in great numbers.  There are scores of terrific male dancers. I have chosen for the present to focus on these fierce, charismatic female choreographers who have not had the same exposure in the US to date. Similarly, our consortium partner, MAPP International, will  launch a  US tour this fall of ‘Voices of Strength’ a two night festival of work by women featuring artists from South Africa, Momzabique, Morocco and Mali.

Back to the present… after a torrential thunderstorm (which are a nearly daily occurrences here) we made our way to Dance Factory for a shared program featuring new works by Mari-Louise Basson, Fana Tshabalala, Boyzie Cekwana and Mdu Mtshali. The evening offered some terrific dancing.  I appreciated the tone and performance commitment of Fana’s piece “Gates of Hell” but it was Boyzie’s three minute “Thinking Out Loud Experiment,” that contained the seeds of an interesting work by a mature artist.

It is a hot an muggy day here at the end of South Africa’s summer. We have lovely hard rains nearly every 24 hours — usually at night. This beautiful old neighborhood of Melville is filled with flowering trees and shrubs and interesting homes all behind heavy walls and gates. Each house has a security sign and often dogs.  Men are posted around the neighborhood to keep watch.  But the feeling is one of serenity and I feel very safe wandering around exploring the streets.

Last  night we attended the Dance Umbrella fundraising gala and performance at the Market Theatre where most events have been taking place. This is a wonderful old building with a grand foyer, and a bar and restaurant that serve as the gathering place where audiences and artists mingle.

The gala was much more modest than in 2010, due no doubt to the loss of their largest funder FNB.  Director Georgina Thomson and project manager David April hosted the event that was smattered with videos and live performances excerpts. All the dancers were spectacular but my favoritel was an excerpt from Gregory Maqoma’s piece “Skeleton Dry”.  We were eager to lend a hand and talk with current and potential sponsors about the importance of DU in the ecology of Southern African dance but sadly none of the staff seemed available to introduce us to their sponsors.

Afterwards we gathered on 7th St. in Melville for dinner and lots of catching up

l-r: Shay Wafer, Ken Foster, Vivan Philips, Cathy Zimmerman

with Boyzie Cekwana, Neli Xaba and Mamela Nyamza. Nothing takes the place of just getting to hang out with these amazing artists and learn more from them about their lives, their work and conditions on the ground. We are very much looking forward to our two days of meetings with them that begin tomorrow. It has been such a gift to have had  major support of the Doris Duke Foundation, NEA and now Robert Sterling Clark to convene, learn, exchange and develop partnerships.

On Saturday evening we returned to see Neli Xaba and Gregory Maqoma’s pieces for a second time. I always prefer to watch work several times over to better dig into the layers of meaning and material. Just like watching a film I am so taken with the surface and the action the first time around that I often need another look to take in all that is offered. I also so appreciate the living quality of performance and the subtle (and not so subtle) changes that keep the work evolving and alive in the moment. I was able to confirm and clarify my impressions to share with my colleagues and to inform my conversations with the artists that I hope to have in the coming days.

Gregory Maqoma

Having an opportunity to spend time with Neli and Greg, along with the many other artists who are here with whom we have history,  is an incredible privilege that speaks to our shared desire to build long term relationships and enduring partnerships.  We are slowly building up our knowledge of the contexts in which they work, deepening our understanding of the issues that drive their work, and growing our friendships. It is an amazing experience.

Neli Xaba

Yesterday (Sunday) we had a casual breakfast on the terrace with time to catch up, process and plan. Just being able to sit outdoors in the balmy air is a great relief and pleasure for me coming from a Maine winter. I feel hugely better and different in this climate.

Then it was off  to the Rosebank Mall which includes an African craft market and an enormous flea market as well as a typical mall. My approach is to survey the whole market and then decide where to shop. I remembered certain items or vendors I hope to re-find and sure enough we did.

Many of the craft stalls carry the same items and I am quickly overwhelmed by the plethora of merchandise on display. It becomes a blur that I must wade through to ‘see’ what I am looking for.  Looping back around i honed in on the colorful, leather-wound bracelets and beaded, ball necklaces I had hoped to find again. Cathy and I also found nifty cotton dresses that will be perfect for a variety of summer activities –so all in all a rewarding shopping adventure.

We returned to our favorite lunch joint, The Lucky Bean, for a leisurely lunch and more brainstorming about future consortium plans and projects.  And then it was off to The Old Stock Exchange downtown to experience Jay Pather’s “Qaphela Caesari” (translation Beware Caesar), a site-specific event that began on the second floor with a series of thin installations in abandoned, empty offices. Among the more interesting rooms was one with a series of empty suits hanging from the ceiling and two figures sprawled on the floor. In another room a secretary was shredding paper until it began devouring the space.

We then moved en masse to the trading room – a gigantic, mysterious space that resembled an odd sort of place of worship with stained glass windows and pews (stalls for the traders) and lots of strange equipment.  For the next hour and a half the performance unfolded in a series of shifting scenes around the space with a cast of 15 performers including an exotic dancer, a sangoma, and a Shakespearean actor. The audience was invited to shift their location and focus repeatedly as scenes moved from the main floor to the pews to the balconies where the trading boards were located. Video screens were mounted around the room with scenes from the child protests in Soweto among the footage. A dark, melodic and evocative score filled the space beautifully amplifying the action. There were big unison sections of very physical and virtuosic dancing by the full cast (on the dirty, concrete floor, which was distressing to me). Stretchy strips of fabric were employed throughout the work as metaphorical umbilical cords (or chains) binding the players together and to the story, and providing an effective architectural definition to the space. Extractions of text from Julius Caesar were sprinkled through the work as were elements of traditional ritual, exotic dancing, popular song (Barbra Streisand’s “The Way We Were” lip-synched by a drag queen) and more.

In the program notes Pather says “The themes of political betrayal, power and prophesy explored through image, dance and sound found resonance in The Old Stock Exchange. Like much of South Africa today it is a space of contradiction and fragmentation as much as one of coherence and possibility.”

The final scene brings the audience into the main foyer of the building, a space with lots of glass, external red elevators carrying passengers up an down, and a mile high ceiling. Here a rock band played loud music while people sipped wine and wondered what now???

Dance critic, Adrienne Sichel offered a smart and informative Q & A with choreographer, Pather at the conclusion.

Our night ended with a little nibble of mediocre sushi on 7th St before retiring for some much needed rest.

For a different perspective on our time here in Joburg check out Marj Neset’s blog at: http://mneset.wordpress.com/

First let me apologize for posting no visual imagery. I opted not to bring my camera as it was one too many things to carry. I will borrow some images from my pals to post soon.

We are into our second full day of dance going, fine dining and catching up on our sleep from the 14 to 38 hours of transit we collectively endured to get here.

The weather is warm, humid and hazy with bursts of thunder and rain at night mixing into the distant soundscape of the lively bar scene just two blocks away. Last night I swear I heard a mean djembe solo that went on and on playing familiar rhythms I knew from years of African dancing.

Seventh St. in Melville is a happening scene especially on weekends. Swanky bars and restaurants line the street with a used bookstore, grocery store, pharmacy and dress shop sprinkled in. One can play, eat, shop — even hear live music — and take care of practical needs. Our favorite spot for great food and wine is The Lucky Bean because its sits at the far end of the street where its quiet and they have lots of outdoor seating – and did I mention thoughtfully prepared and delicious food. Yes I am a foodie!

Last night we got down to business attending Neli Xaba’s new 30-minute video/performance at the Goodman Space – Arts on Main – a really cool space the Goethe Institute has developed downtown in an industrial neighborhood. This  complex houses William Kentridges studio, a print shop, high end fashion design workshop, a snazzy cafe (Canteen), and two or more raw performance spaces.

Neli Xaba Uncles & Angels

Neli came to BDF last summer along with choreographers Kettly Noel and Mamela Nyamza.  She was in the early stages of developing this work, “Uncles & Angels” that comments on the revival in South Africa of the Reed Dance. In 2011 more than 50,000 young girls participated in this massive ‘celebration’ of chastity and virginity that presumes to be an effective tool in curbing the spread of HIV!

“Uncles & Angels” is a solo work that pairs virtual imagery with live performance to question the enforced chastity of young girls. Neli is at once a woman and a girl, provocative and innocent, obedient and shamed. Her talent for effective, funny costuming is present in her white furry undergarments topped by a beaded hot pink mini skirt of sorts with a furry halter top that doubles as an animal skin headdress.  Her multipled images line up to mirror her antics and on obediently opens her legs for a virginity exam. There’s a stairway to ….hell (?)  littered with high heels, some funky hip shakin’ booty moves and a pretty powerful mirror cast on the absurdity of this pseudo symbolic ‘reed dance.”

From there we went directly to the historic Market Theatre for Dance Umbrella’s opening night performance of Gregory Maqoma’s new work, “Exit/Exist”.  Gregory has been an artist in residence at BDF on several occasions since 2005 and we presented his exceptional work, “Beautiful Me” in 2009. Tonight the house was full and what a fabulous post-apartheid mix of art lovers. Over its’ 24 years Dance Umbrella has succeeded in building a strong and diverse audience for contemporary dance and I am so glad they have found a way to continue hosting this important festival after their long time sponsor, Standard Bank pulled out two years ago.

“Exit/Exist features an absolutely extraordinary quartet of singers, all formerly with Hugh Masekela’s band, along with one of the most sublime guitarist, Guiliano Modarelli, I have ever had the privilege to hear.  Seated behind a scrim the singers also play supporting roles in the story of Maqoma, a renowned chief of the Xhosa nation who waged war with the English in the mid-1900 to liberate  land and cattle. A piece of old history known by but a few.

Gregory donning a gorgeous shimmering silver suit performs a subtle, detailed, mesmerizing dance delineating the stage all the while with his back to us. Never has a clothed back been so expressive. This abstract opening section is stunning. Still a work in progress, as the piece continues Maqoma’s plight and demise is told in quite literal terms through the text, props and imagery. The program notes say that “the core of the piece is about memory, rephrasing the notion of existence and the notion of simply existing in order to exist.”

A reception ensued after the performance and the crowd of happy opening nighters poured into the lobby devouring the buffet and spilling out into the square to socialize.

Serendipity is my favorite aspect of travel. Those delightful moments when one encounters the unexpected. Coming to a festival halfway around the world – or anywhere—part of the fun is who you see and reconnect with. Then there are all those new folks to meet. Now that we, the Africa Consortium, have been visiting the continent for over eight years, attending festivals and visiting with artists on their home turf, we know people. So last night we got to reconnect with some of our friends and get our festival groove on.

Continuing with the notion of serendipity, this morning we went to Wits Theatre for Stepping Stones, the annual festival showcase of young talent featuring 50 groups over two days. At the entrance to the theater was a large group of kids in a circle/crowd taking turns dancing to a single young drummer. They were practicing their moves for the show and having a blast. So many lit up, glowing faces and boy they were throwing down some pretty funky, nasty moves.  What a scene – it was for me almost the best part of the show.

Then it was off to another yummy lunch at Melon on 7^th St with our colleagues Shay Wafer from 651 Arts and Vivian Philips of the Seattle Theatre Group.

Tonight I will revisit Gregory’s performance –always love the chance to see a piece more than once and dig deeper into the layers of information that make up any good work.

For another perspective on our time here in Joburg check out Marj Neset’s blog at: http://mneset.wordpress.com/

Last night, after a 14 hour flight, I arrive back in Johannesburg for the 24th edition of Dance Umbrella. I am settled in at the familiar and lovely guest house, Tama Rumah in Melville along with my Africa Contemporary Arts Consortium colleagues Joan Frosch, Marj Neset and Cathy Zimmerman. We have enjoyed a delicious lunch at our favorite local restaurant,The Lucky Bean and toasted to our return to this amazing country. Tonight we are off to see new works by BDF alums Gregory Maqoma and Neli Xaba.

Lunching at the Lucky Bean

Driving into town last night from the airport the sun was a giant orange ball perched on the horizon saying welcome back to Africa. The air was fresh and sticky after a hard rain and so invitingly warm after a winter in Maine. Sometimes I love returning to a favorite place that is familiar, (our little guest house has all the same employees as last time) and yet offers new adventures. We will see lots of new work here and meet with African artists colleagues to plot the future of our project fostering international exchanges.

Outside my window exotic birds are singing and I feel so privileged to do this work with friends from around the world.