KUDJA
A New dance work by NAfro’s Artistic Director Casimiro Nhussi.
This work will highlight the performance of three male dancers from Toronto as well as NAfro Dance’s artists.
WARNING – Production Contains Partial Female Frontal Nudity
From the NAfro website
“Kudja, initiation ritual is in town
The energy is high…way up to the roof….four male dancers pushing their (turbo-charged) bodies to the limit. Man, it is intense…!!! Then there are the seven female dancers… No one wants to be left behind… You know them. They are always energetic and beautiful movers and now with these male guest dancers beside them; they have picked up their moves to the next level…Lord!, it is boiling in here!! The dance piece is called Kudja, a new creation of NAfro Dance Productions and it has been crafted by the Artistic Director Casimiro Nhussi. This is the biggest cast of professional dancers that NAfro has assembled in ten years. it is a fascinating and culturally mind-opening dance piece. Yes, the human body can fly, without wires strapped to their bodies…. Just human bodies flying, no special effects…. Oh boy, the energy in NAfro Dance’s studio feels like prep for the playoffs!!
..and what can I say about NAfro’s drummers…”
“The Gas Station Arts Centre will be the venue for an evening of percussion, chants and highly energetic African inspired movement as well as rhythm driven choreographies.
“KUDJA means “coming from…” in Makonde language, and it’s a traditional ceremony to celebrate the end of the initiation ritual. This ceremony marks the passage from childhood to adulthood. In traditional African societies, the passage from one stage of life to the next is marked with important rituals and ceremonies. From the moment of birth, an African is connected to family, to community and to the ancestors. The arrival of a child is often seen as the reintroduction of the spirit of an honored ancestor back into the world.
This production will feature eleven dancers and nine musicians. Three male dancers will be from Toronto, six NAfro’s professional dancers, two apprentice dancers and one male student dancer. NAfro professional dancers will be Paula Blair, Helene Le Moullec Mancini, Nicole Coppens, Robyn Thomson Kacki, and Paige Lewis. Guest dancers from Toronto will be Benton Morris, Mikhail Morris and Sale Alberto. Two apprentice dancers will be Alexandra Garrido and Alexandra Scarola. The male student dancer will be Ardley Zozobrado.
Kudja runs Fri Mar 1st and Saturday Mar 2nd at 8pm and Sunday Mar 3rd at 2pm at the Gas Station Arts Centre, 445 River Avenue at Osborne Street.
Tickets: $25 adult, $20 senior and students, $12 children under 12, available at The Gas Station Arts Centre (cash only), online at www.nafrodance.com and cash at the door.”
