Mtwan’oMntu is a musical and choreographic exploration of yearning and connectedness, conceptualised and performed by Xolisile Bongwana and Thulisile Binda, and directed by Smangaliso Ngwenya for The Centre for the Less Good Idea in March 2021.
Attempting to mine the complex, dynamic, and non-linear expressions that come with seeking a connectedness with, and belonging in, the world, Mtwan’oMntu is a story told primarily through the art of sound and the body in motion. For Binda and Bongwana, the act of connecting with ‘the other’ is a process that is not without contestation. There is a jostling for attention, space, and time, and there is a clashing of ideologies, approaches, ways of seeing, and methods of moving through the world. In their performance, through the use of the body, the voice, and choice instants of instrumentation, the two make visible these frictions in sharp, poetic vignettes.
Moments of hesitancy and the act of waiting – of making sense of approach and intimacy – are present throughout the performance. Instruments, gestures, and physical and ideological proximities are held, but not immediately acted upon. When they are actioned out, it is through a flurry of formality, intimacy, and uncertainty. There are moments of great vulnerability and tenderness, too. The offering of water, the washing of the feet, or the outstretched arm all serve to mark moments of growth, softness, and an embracing of difference along the two performers’ respective journeys.
Abstract choreographic moments are juxtaposed by more overt visual metaphors throughout – the use of the mask as disguise, deceit, guardedness, and conceit – while the introduction of musical performances serve to provide distance and harmony in equal measure, working to narrate and contextualise that which might not be possible through physical performance.
Mtwan’oMntu is a journey of two characters through moments of isolation and intimacy, yearning and growth. It is a journey that sees both characters recreating themselves through the act of meeting and learning, again and again.
– David Mann
CREDITS:
CONCEPTUALISERS, CREATORS & PERFORMERS | Xolisile Bongwana & Thulisile Binda
MUSICIANS | Xolisile Bongwana & Thulisile Binda
COMPOSER | Xolisile Bongwana
DIRECTOR | Smangaliso Ngwenya
DRAMATURG | Phala O Phala