Sufi's grammar school
T.S. Warren
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Ballet National de la Côte d'Ivoire's Oumar N'Diaye
photo: Lorne Finley
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Sufi Girl's Africa Is a Verb aims to get Ottawa moving
"Africa is about movement," says Ottawa dancer and independent producer Lainie Towell, a.k.a Sufi Girl, when asked about the title behind the unique event she is launching this Saturday at La Nouvelle Scène theatre.Featuring dancer-musicians from Guinea Conakry and the Ivory Coast in an informal open-concept theatre environment, Africa Is a Verb attempts to break down boundaries between vibrant African performers and passive Western spectators.
And that vibrancy is something Towell knows first-hand as a dance artist who travels regularly to the culturally rich Guinea Conakry to study traditional music and dance. Earlier this year, she married a Guinean artist.
"I can even tell you that at my wedding we had three traditional dances over two days. Everybody is in a large circle in the street and everyone - people of all ages - leaps in and out of their seats and dances."
What appeals to the energetic Towell about West African dance is "the participatory thing, the sense of community; it's just filled with life. The minute I hear those drums, boom! I'm right there in the moment."
Last year, the fledgling producer brought in the fabulous all-female West African djembe drumming group Les Amazones in a traditional theatre setting at Arts Court. It blew the roof off. This Saturday's interactive theatrical event stars five male performers. Among them is Guinean Alseny Yansané, a former performer with the world-renowned Ballets Africains.
"Guinean spectators are more ruckus... clapping
their hands, singing along and spontaneously jumping to their feet to dance in place or run up on stage to throw money at performers," Yansané writes during a recent email exchange.Even though Yansané toured internationally for years with Ballets Africains, he admits he has yet to be involved in a theatrical event like Africa Is a Verb.
"I think it's a great idea and I would love it if Western audiences were more involved in the performance." Towell stresses that audience members don't have to dance, or even participate. "I realize I can't recreate Africa, but perhaps a deeper cultural experience for the viewers when they come."
For those who want to take their understanding of West African dance even further, workshops with the artists will be offered throughout the day of the performance at Arts Court.
Along with Yansané, the artists giving the workshops are djembe drummer Billy Nankouma Konaté, son of the legendary drummer Famadou Konaté; Montreal-based Afro-contemporary dancer Aboubacar Mané, originally with the Ballet National de la Cote d'Ivoire; and veteran performer Oumar N'Diaye, who grew up in the heady days of Guinea's cultural revolution, and his son, Mohamed N'Diaye.
Africa Is a Verb
Saturday, October 20, 8 p.m., $20
Théâtre La Nouvelle Scène
For info on Sufi's workshops, call 613-276-SUFI
