Photo Essay | Vuyani Dance Theatre’s ‘Cion’

Conceived and choreographed by Gregory Maqoma, this requiem to departed souls offers an opportunity to heal through isicathamiya music and interpretive dance.

13 Sep 2019
11 September 2019: After gracing the stages of several European festivals, Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Boléro has returned to Johannesburg. This dance theatre work is a universal story encompassing the past and the present, championing our ability to share grief.
11 September 2019: After gracing the stages of several European festivals, Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Boléro has returned to Johannesburg. This dance theatre work is a universal story encompassing the past and the present, championing our ability to share grief.

Accompanied by the Soweto Gospel Choir, Vuyani Dance Theatre’s Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Boléro forms part of the company’s 20th anniversary celebrations.

It is on at The Mandela at Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein until Sunday 15 September 2019.

11 September 2019: “We are all victims clouded by fear. This work stands against that dark cloud and brings us light and hope that humanity still exists, even in our darkest times,” says Gregory Maqoma, the artistic director of Vuyani Dance Theatre.
11 September 2019: Dancer Noko Moeketsi in Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Boléro, which is delivered by an isicathamiya troupe and the percussive voices of Vuyani dancers, under the musical direction of Xolisile Bongwana and Nhlanhla Mahlangu.
11 September 2019: The Soweto Gospel Choir performing the isicathamiya, which “was born as a colonial response yet later became our heritage. The music was born out of ‘trying not to be heard’ and its dance was born out of ‘trying not to be seen’,” says composer Nhlanhla Mahlangu.
11 September 2019: The Soweto Gospel Choir performing the isicathamiya, which “was born as a colonial response yet later became our heritage. The music was born out of ‘trying not to be heard’ and its dance was born out of ‘trying not to be seen’,” says composer Nhlanhla Mahlangu.
11 September 2019: Creative director Gregory Maqoma founded the Vuyani Dance Theatre in 1999. After years of performing on international and local stages, Vuyani is one of the most thought-provoking dance and theatrical organisations to have emerged in Africa.
11 September 2019: “This work has been chosen to celebrate our 20th anniversary and to amplify the message that we need to pause for a moment and urgently think about the pain inflicted by the actions of others,” says director Gregory Maqoma.
11 September 2019: In Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Boléro, director Gregory Maqoma draws inspiration from creations by two artists: the character Toloki in South African author Zakes Mda’s novel Cion and music from French composer Maurice Ravel’s Boléro, originally a ballet score.
11 September 2019: Director Gregory Maqoma and his contemporary African dance company share an innovative, visually stunning full-length work that brings literature to life. The production has 20 dancers and 16 musicians on stage.
11 September 2019: Director Gregory Maqoma and his contemporary African dance company share an innovative, visually stunning full-length work that brings literature to life. The production has 20 dancers and 16 musicians on stage.
11 September 2019: Set in a graveyard, the persistent cries of people in mourning and the a cappella music of isicathamiya sung by the Soweto Gospel Choir vividly elicit the emotions associated with the loss of life.
11 September 2019: Set in a graveyard, the persistent cries of people in mourning and the a cappella music of isicathamiya sung by the Soweto Gospel Choir vividly elicit the emotions associated with the loss of life.
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