This year, 2024, marks 30 years of the South African Democracy and marking 25 years of Vuyani Dance Theatre as a pioneering contemporary dance company that uses history as a pad to tell our collective stories. Rhythm Colour will be the vehicle used this year to reflect these stories at the Gibson Kente Theatre, Soweto Theatre on 16 June 2024 at 14:30.
Restaging Rhythm Colour, which was created in 2002 by Founder and Executive Creative Director, Gregory Maqoma for the National Arts Festival as a Standard Bank Young Artist commission, poignantly conjures the mood surrounding the iconic image of that fateful day in 1976: Sam Nzima’s photo of a dying Hector Pieterson, being carried through the streets of Soweto by Mbuyisa Makhubu.
Rhythm Colour gives us an opportunity to reflect through movement, music, storytelling and archived historical material to allow healing to manifest by remembering and honouring the youth of 1976, while also acknowledging the plight of injustices facing our youth today. The retaliation, the chaos, the confusion, the lack of trust in the system, the finger-pointing, the fires erupting…all of these elements are part of Rhythm Colour, and the archived political content on video give context to the ideas and allow the dancers to interpret them and bring them to life.
“Our common humanity as Africans dictates that as we rose against colonial oppression and slavery, our impulse today must rise to propel us to do everything possible to get rid of all factors of human degradation. It is time we stand together to attack poverty, racism, xenophobia and any related intolerances to truly rebuild our communities” shares Gregory Maqoma.
“We are looking forward to welcoming Vuyani Dance Theatre as they present this diverse body of work that will unite Theatre enthusiasts. Audiences will be encompassed by the full spectrum of emotions which makes for the perfect experience that takes your breath away, offering healing and hope,” said Vincent Motau, General Manager of Soweto Theatre.
This short season at Soweto Theatre salutes our brothers and sisters who changed the education system and the apartheid policy. We are grateful to Joburg City Theatres, especially Soweto Theatre for acknowledging and supporting this initiative, which in itself constitutes a tribute to the millions of our people and a profound statement of hope that all of us will, together through the arts, respond to and expand the frontiers of human dignity.
Many of us continue to draw inspiration from those stalwarts and comrades who have laid such a solid foundation, and their legacy is evident in our unstinting passion to dance, sing and to change the world one step at a time.
Tickets for this once off performance are available for R60. We also invite patrons to sponsor tickets for school going youth to attend the show and be a part of shaping South Africa’s future narrative while reflecting on our past.
For more information please visit: https://www.sowetotheatre.com/gregory-maqomas-rhythm-colour/
