European Dancehouse Network (EDN) Cape Town Encounter

The European Dancehouse Network (EDN) in partnership with the Institute for Creative Arts (ICA) will host the EDN Cape Town Encounter from Tuesday 10 March – Saturday 14 March 2020, with two evening events open to the public on:

Tuesday 10 March, 5.30 for 6pm &
Friday 13 March, 5.30 for 6pm

About EDN & the Cape Town Encounter
EDN is a network for trust and cooperation between 42 European dancehouses sharing a common vision regarding the development of dance art across borders. The EDN Cape Town Encounter will consider the promises and pitfalls of African choreographers and artists touring European contexts. Many institutions abroad have not kept up with contemporary developments in the political, ethical and aesthetic expectations of African artists. And African artists, in turn, look to European tours to increase their audience base, interact with artists and producers globally, as well as experience the financial benefits these tours offer when compared with trying to stage works at home. The EDN Encounter will open up these discussions, and create an opportunity for artists, producers and students to meet and network, as well as shift and influence the dynamics of the exchange.

EDN Public events
EDN will meet with a cross-section of producers and choreographers throughout their week-long visit. In addition, the Encounter features two stimulating public events on the evenings of Tuesday 10 March, and Friday 13 March. EDN and the ICA invite the public and particularly dancers, choreographers, artists and academics interested in dance to attend the following:

TUESDAY 10 MARCH, 5.30 FOR 6PM
UCT HIDDINGH CAMPUS

EDN | Activities with (inter)national artists and communities
In this presentation, EDN members from across Europe will share their experiences of developing dancehouses in their home countries with national and international artists and communities. The panel will feature the following speakers:

Àngels Margarit | Director – Mercat de les Flors, Barcelona Spain
Bettina Masuch | General Director – Tanzhaus NRW, Düsseldorf Germany
Bush Hartshorn | Head of Catalyst – Dance Base | National Centre for Dance, Edinburgh UK
Elisabetta Bisaro | Head of international development | La Briqueterie, Centre de Développement Chorégraphique National du Val-de-Marne, Vitry-sur-Seine France
Roberto Casarotto | Head of Dance Programme | Centro per la Scena Contemporanea and Operaestate Festival, Bassano del Grappa Italy
nora chipaumire | Choreographer | Zimbabwe/New York

The event will culminate in a presentation by ICA Director Professor Jay Pather. Drawn from his paper Show Me the ~~World~~ Gaze, which Pather presented at the Haus der Kunst in Munich, this presentation considers the curation of performances from the African continent and the experiences of black artists. This will be followed by a public discussion.

FRIDAY 13 MARCH, 5:30 for 6PM
UCT HIDDINGH CAMPUS

nora chipaumire | dreaming - UNsustainability as a tool for the “new African” thinker-maker-doer
What is infrastructure? How can the black African artist build this? What does one need to dream beyond the hand to mouth systems in place for many artists? nora chipaumire’s presentation will be a thinking out loud, dreaming beyond the ngo-funded creations to European tour (hand to mouth, studio to theatre, studio to tour) market system. A reflection on economies of imaginations – an invitation to think with others on how we can grow creative surplus.

Born in Mutare, Zimbabwe and based in New York City, nora chipaumire has been challenging and embracing stereotypes of Africa and the black performing body, art and aesthetics since she started making dances in 1998. chipaumire is currently touring #PUNK 100%POP *N!GGA (verbalised as hash tag punk, one hundred percent pop, star nigga), a three-part live performance album which had its full world premiere at The Kitchen in NYC in October 2018. Her current and ongoing work includes a digital book project – nhaka – representing a fundamental theory, technology, practice and process to her artistic work. Her upcoming work will be an opera. chipaumire is a 2018 Guggenheim fellow and a four-time Bessie Award winner.

Followed by a public discussion.