The Soweto Theatre is billed to be a hive of gyrating movement in May as Naledi Award nominee, Thami Tshabalala, returns to the Jabulani performance hub with “Isenyuso,” one of his premier dance pieces.
This riveting performance is billed to run in Tshabalala’s hometown from Thursday, 5 until Saturday, 7 May 2022.
‘Isenyuso’ emanates from Tshabalala’s first choreographed dance piece, ‘Simon’, which received critical acclaim at the relaunch of the Dance Umbrella in 2019 and at several national dance festivals like PACE and the Solo and Duet Festival at the Soweto Theatre. It was nominated in the Best Contemporary/Ballet Production category at the Naledi Awards in 2020.
Isenyuso is a noun derived from Tshabalala’s native isiZulu language, meaning “ascension”.
He says it is a contemporary dance work that details a global narrative of individual justice, liberty, representation, and the preservation of heritage. All are scrutinised through the lens of a new age man of colour, supported by his African heritage.
“Isenyuso is a marriage of a fresh Afro-classical feel. Audio-visuals are accompanied by intricate and conversational movement, and choreography is used to express the words with a modern sound,” he explains.
Inspired by everyday life, Tshabalala says he created ‘Isenyuso’ after being moved by a painting at a gallery in France that depicted a Black man figuratively carrying his life on his shoulders, his inheritance, his ancestors, and his family’s expectations.
The artwork resonated with him so much so that he saw himself in it, being a queer man of colour living in a society that sometimes has unreasonable expectations but tries to balance being true to his roots and the importance of tradition.
“I thought this painting would make a great dance piece,” he says.
He adds that his piece was also influenced by Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart,” which reminds him of the French painting and his disposition. Achebe’s book chronicles the life of Okonkwo, a wrestling champion in the fictional Nigerian tribe of Umuofia. He was empowered by the notion of superiority and toxic masculinity, which became his downfall and led him astray from the genuine essence of being his true desired self.
After reading “Things Fall Apart,” Tshabalala realised he wanted to tell his story of being a queer man of colour who is constantly expected to conform to societal expectations.
“This relates to a lot of young black boys. The narrative is always about the girl or woman, and young boys are often forgotten. How are we raising our boys to become men? This is what I want to address. I want to tell my story, their stories, and be their loudest voice. The more we tell their stories, the more we educate them,” he says.
Tshabalala has proved to be a tour de force since matriculating from the National School of Arts (NSA) in 2009. He went on to graduate from the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) in 2013, majoring in dance. He has since been afforded tremendous opportunities to choreograph and dance for some of the industry’s top theatre and dance doyens, including Andile Stali and Kebu Mwale, to name a few. He has just returned from a successful Vienna-Austria dance tour of Dada Masilo’s ‘The Sacrifice’.
Isenyuso will run at the Soweto Theatre in Jabulani from Thursday, 5 to Saturday, 7 May. All performances are scheduled from 7:30pm. Tickets cost R120 through WebTickets or at Pick ‘n Pay.
Written by Bongiwe Radebe
11/04/2022