The 13th annual Baxter Dance Festival is back to wow audiences with over 64 new pieces by 73 choreographers over a period of 8 days. Headlining this year’s festival is the commissioned work by choreographer, dancer and teacher Themba Mbuli of the acclaimed Sold! and Adagio for a hacked life.
This year opens with two performances by the acclaimed Moving Into Dance Mophatong from Johannesburg on Thursday, 5 October and Friday 6 October, 2017 at 8pm. As one of the first mixed-race dance companies, Moving into Dance (MID) has become a leading Contemporary African dance company, at the forefront of Afrofusion and Edudance styles.
A fresh take on the art of dance
Among the list of dance companies showcasing their work are Cape Dance Company, Dance For All, Eoan group School of Performing Arts, JazzArt Dance Theatre, the Kirvan Fortuin Company, La Rosa, New World Dance Theatre and Taare, each with their unique style and fresh take on the art of dance.
The 2017 Baxter Dance Festival consists of the Main Programme which will include invited and commissioned works, as well as work by recognized professional choreographers and companies and runs for the entire festival. The Off-Main Programme, on Saturday, 7 October, will showcase the work by up-and-coming choreographers (plus student work), and the Fringe Programme on Saturday, 15 October, will include work by youth groups, dance schools, school groups, traditional dance groups and others.
Especially exciting this year is the commissioned work for this year’s festival. Each year the Baxter invites dance makers to apply for the commissioned work. This year the Baxter has shaken things up by inviting individual dancers to audition to be part of the commissioned work with Mbuli.
Mbuli is the 2016 Standard Bank Young Award recipient and has been performing for 17 years, graduating with a certificate in performing arts in 2017. Mbuli is an associate artistic manager and a co-founder – together with Fana Tshabalala and Thulani Chauke – of Broken Borders Arts Project. He is also a co-founder and the choreographer and artistic director of the Unmute Dance Company (UNMUTE), which was formed in 2014 to help pioneer integrated dance in South Africa, using the arts to inspire the inclusion of people with disabilities.
Previous year’s choreographers
Previous choreographers of the commissioned work are Ebrahim Medell (2005), Marlin Zoutman (2006), collaborators Yarisha Singh and Celeste Botha (2007), Levern Botha (2008), Mamela Nyamza (2009), Carolyn Holden from La Rosa Spanish Dance Theatre (2010), Grant van Ster (2011), Ananda Fuchs (2012), Steven van Wyk and Thalia Laric in 2014 and Louise Coetzer of Darkroom Contemporary in 2016
“We continue to be blown away by the on-going support and encouragement we received from local dance communities in the city, province and beyond. This support shows particularly in the growing number of applications and participants we receive each year,” says Nicolette Moses, artistic director of the Festival and associate producer and planning manager at the Baxter.
What: 2017 Baxter Dance Festival
Book tickets: 0861 915 8000, www.computicket.co.za, Shoprite Checkers outlet Discounted bookings, charities 021 680 3962, sharon.ward@uct.ac.za
See the Programme: http://bit.ly/2x0kMbx
Web: www.baxter.co.za or on facebook.com/Baxter Theatre
Social media: www.facebook.com/BaxterTheatre or www.twitter.com/BaxterTheatre
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