When I asked Cindy about her highlight of the year long Fellowship programme she answered ‘working with my mentor Kate Scanlan, a producer who worked with Breakin Convention for years and has a lot of experience that is close to what I do. If I could have sat down with her every week I would have done, she always gave me a new perspective on things when I was stuck.’
So what about the future? Cindy will be curating a scratch night at Richmix in September so keep your eyes peeled for more information. She is also looking for more investment to continue the UK/JA exchange and development of educational and performance programmes.
Kenzi Ireland
Kenzi has recently finished her BA in Dance Performance at Middlesex University and has been training and performing traditional and contemporary African dance for eight years with south west based companies including Tolo Ko Tolo and Ballet Nimba. She has now returned to Bristol to teach neo-traditional African dance and develop her own contemporary fusion dance vocabulary. Her vision is to work to bring African dance into mainstream education so her intention with the Trailblazer fellowship was to explore African dance further and discover how dance is evolving and has evolved in Africa. Kenzi travelled to Senegal to take part in Germaine Acogny’s Ecole des Sables. Whilst there she learnt traditional dances from across Africa as each of the participants from the continent brought a traditional dance with them, and she also trained in the school’s signature Acogny technique. Kenzi took the opportunity to consider what contemporary African dance means for different people. ‘As far as I’m concerned African dance has everything, it’s completely limitless so rather than thinking that we need to have contemporary dance technique its about looking at what we have and how we can utilise that and make it ours, how to deconstruct African dance from a contemporary perspective.’
‘Since finishing my degree I’ve broadened my work in terms of the styles I dance and the groups that I work with: I’ve done family classes, I have an elders class, I’m working in schools and with St Pauls Carnival. I’m lucky to be working with different instructors who have years of experience so I’m absorbing their knowledge. It’s really helpful to meet other teachers and get a confirmation that I’m practising in the right way. I’ve even worked on a project choreographing a dance for a song that was created by Integrated Bristol for a campaign they are doing against female genital mutilation and domestic violence and I would never have thought of myself as a choreographer.
‘I feel that I’m in the right place doing what I want to do, and Trailblazers has really helped with that. I graduated straight onto the programme and since then one door has opened after another, I’ve just continuously been given and created opportunities and everything is coming into place.
Idrissa Camara
Idrissa is an artist whose feet rarely touch the ground. Hailing from Guinea Conakry he brings his flamboyant and dynamic dance style to audiences around the UK with his Dance Theatre company Ballet Nimba. Since being established just over four years ago, Nimba have enjoyed great success as a touring dance company. They are now touring their fourth production, Sagatala, a work that explores masculinity from a Guinean perspective, and have just started work on the next piece Ntokee. I asked Idrissa about his experience as a Trailblazer:
What was the project you set out to do with the fellowship bursary?
To look at how the urban dance culture has evolved from what is seen in the villages. Since arriving here in the UK, people always refer to what I do as traditional dance but I’ve never thought of it that way, it's based on tradition but to me it's modern as it's what we dance in the city. I wanted to go back and speak to the elders about how and why we developed our traditional dances into what we see today, to record their opinions and experiences for my own learning and so that I could also pass that on to other dancers and students of African dance. It's part of what will be a life-long project for me. I want to look back for inspiration to help me move forwards.
How did the project go, was it a success?
Yes but it's just the start for me. I looked at Baga and Nalu culture in the villages but my aim will be to travel all over Guinea to learn about other traditions and document them for future generations. I started with the Baga as my father was Baga, the next part of my project will be to look at Malinke and Susu traditions as my Mothers family was Malinke and Susu. Then after that Fula traditions, then after the Forestiere region... It's something I'm passionate about, I believe it's so important. I filmed dances, recorded interviews, learned new dance vocabulary and even made sound recordings of folk tales and children's stories.
How has the TB fellowship helped you?
It helped me to understand more about my own identity and my own ancestry. As I was brought up in the city, much of the village practices were new to me. Being part of the trailblazer family has given me confidence, it's like having approval and recognition that what I'm trying to do with my work is important and worthwhile.
What is the most important lesson you have learnt during the fellowship period?
How lucky I am to be born Guinean, to be part of such a rich and diverse culture but also how lucky I have been to be able to come to Europe and introduce this culture to audiences here and then still luckier to go back to Guinea to learn even more. It's like a never ending circle of inspiration. It's been amazing to have this opportunity to film all these dance companies, spend time with them, learn from them, teach them, I hope one day I will be able to offer some of the best young dancers in Guinea an opportunity to come here and dance for me!
What has been the highlight of the TB fellowship?
The performance, having the opportunity to present my work to my mentor Bawren Tavaziva and the other choreographers, past and current trailblazers. To feel supported and encouraged to try something different and knowing that people were willing me to succeed and yet also ready to direct and advise me should I need it. It really feels like a family and I'm proud to be a part of it.
What’s coming next?
I’ve edited a short film about my trip to Guinea which will be screened at the Wales Dance Platform and I’ve just started work on a new full length production called Ntokee, which means ‘the way you see me.’ I will use inspiration from my trip to also influences from my experience of living and working in the UK. I will be working with a technical team to challenge the way people expect to see Guinean dance presented. I hope that one day I’ll take one of my productions back to Guinea and inspire and influence the future evolution of our dance practices and how we present it!
Cleo Lake
Cleo Lake - 'Exposure' Showcase at The Place, London
Cleo describes herself as a dance activist because for her dance is about more than art, she creates work that has a message of relevance: ‘I believe in the power of dance to create energy and transform.’ Cleo’s passion is in leading and choreographing large-scale mas and procession dances that unite people and tap into the spiritual and profound natural healing force of dance. ‘My work isn’t necessarily about creating complex choreography, instead I get a buzz from keeping things simple and accessible to more people.’
With her fellowship bursary Cleo travelled to Ghana to attend the annual Homowo festival of the Ga people in Teshie, Accra. The festival celebrates a time during the migration of the Ga to their present home in Accra when the rains failed and food was scarce. When they arrived the people had great success with the crops that they planted, as their hunger ended they ‘hooted at hunger’ from which the name of the festival is derived.
Cleo now plays an important role within Bristol’s St Pauls Carnival as chair of the board, and has launched a range of classes incorporating sound system dance and carnival arts. She plans to explore further the connection between masquerade, spirit and ancestors in Benin, the home of voodoo, and to learn more of the traditional and spiritual dance practices within the Kumina tradition of Jamaica. ‘Kumina is a tradition that some say has links to voodoo, it includes dance, music, song and herbs, it’s the more African centred cultural aspect of Jamaica and would take me back to where my family are from.’ With this rich knowledge of dance and masquerade traditions from different cultures Cleo hopes to create her own mas band at St Pauls Carnival.
When asked what what was the highlight of the Trailblazer experience Cleo explained that having an opportunity to deliver a workshop and perform at the Place was great but the most helpful part of the programme were the mentoring sessions she had with H Patten, an artist who shares her passion for spirituality in dance and has a wealth of knowledge around Ghanaian and Jamaican dance traditions. ‘I’ve been a dance activist since 2004 and the fellowship has helped me to stick with it, I don’t think I would still be pushing myself to do as much as I’m doing if I hadn’t won the Trailblazer fellowship. It’s about believing in yourself and what you have to say as an artist, no matter what try and stay on the path, there will be certain challenges that come your way but stick with it. Sometimes I feel I’m doing God’s work, the vision is bigger than myself so I have to keep going.’
