The Centre for the Less Good Idea is an interdisciplinary incubator space for the arts based in Maboneng, Johannesburg

NOVEMBER 2018 | FOR ONCE | MNQUMA

Mnquma is a solo performance by dancer Xolisile Bongwana, performed at The Centre for the Less Good Idea in November 2018 as part of the For Once programme. While Mnquma has gone on to tour and develop further, this is the first iteration of the performance.

Conceptualised and choreographed by Bongwana and dancer, teacher and choreographer David April, Mnquma is a performance “in quest of our intersecting narratives to connect with our roots.” It is a play about identity, self-discovery, and the journey of reconnecting with one’s ancestors in order to achieve a sense of belonging. All of this being expertly held and communicated through the medium of dance.

Boyhood, rites of passage and the subsequent journey to becoming a man are also key components to the work. Bongwana grapples with these throughout, sometimes through music and the spoken word, but largely through dance – a tightly choreographed narrative communicated through a performance that’s both fluid and feverish, contemplative and compelling.

Minimal set design keeps the physicality of the performance in the spotlight, while original musical compositions by No-Finish Dywili, Elvis Sibeko, and Bongwana himself both supplement the physical performance and serve as fully realised works of their own.

Mnquma is a performance that is alive with movement, music and emotion. It is a brief but impactful work that communicates a personal story through a universal medium.

– David Mann

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