The 45th edition of the Festival d’Automne opens this weekend in Paris. Several shows are on the program, including the creation of Nora Chipaumire, DambudzoThe Zimbabwean choreographer, who is very well-known internationally, lived in New York for a long time and now divides her time mainly between Harare and Berlin.
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Nora Chipaumire has made the industrial space of Chaudronneries de Montreuil her own, opening it to the public with the democratic spirit that characterizes her. The large stage partitioned with large colored plastic panels is divided into several spaces.
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The public is invited to follow the dancers in a place inspired by the shebeens, these informal bars where Zimbabweans met in resistance to colonization. There a brawl takes place, elsewhere a procession, or even a kind of sung ritual to which the public is invited to mingle with the artists.
” Our movement uses the language of everyday life. Everyone can do it. We want to celebrate every day and elevate it to the level of art. “, says Nora Chipaumire.
And if the music is present from start to finish, there is also the barking of the dogs which create a feeling of terror. These large Rhodesian mastiffs used by the whites in Zimbabwe against blacks during colonization.
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Nora Chipaumire explains her approach: “ I think most people of my generation are afraid of dogs. I wanted to convey that violence. Not just the violence of guns or death, but also the constant barking that reminds you of your place. »
Dambudzoa striking, unifying work, of which Nora Chipaumire holds the secret.