Phase 2 - Thoulathy Research and Exchange
Contes Imbriqués is a nomadic performance project based on local and mostly unknown tales about mythological water spirits originating from Thuringia, East Germany in interjection with those from the desert oasis M’hamid, Southern Morocco, as well as from Bamako-Kati, Mali.
For this cross-regional project, the Centre Culturel Tuareg Tumast Bamako, the Festival Nomades du Monde and the Other Music Academy (OMA) Weimar cooperate and bring their communities together. At the heart of this co-production is an international group of professional artists who work with communities (schools, cultural centers and neighborhoods) in the three regions, collaborating in the areas of music, dance, set design and mask-making. In nomadic manner, they develop a dance/musical performance along the journey through residencies in the different regions, inviting the audience to experience and reflect on folkloric material, within a contemporary performance setting. The overarching topic of water currents, focusing on the Niger and the Elbe, invites the topics of migration, pollution and social connectivity along their shores. The project commits to integrating various communities and connecting their stories in the final performance. The project is based on the shared interest in local storytelling, as well as the experience of a rapid loss of these vernacular tales. The ensemble consists of artistic tandems from the three regions, coordinated by Ilana Reynolds (Göttingen), Salif Berthé (Bamako) and Valentin Schmehl (Berlin), together with the curators Issa Dicko (Bamako) and Nourredine Bougrab (M’hamid). In 2023, a first version was premiered at the Festival des Nomades in Morocco, and a second version of 30min length at the Sommerfest in Aken (Elbe). The performance is to further grow through following artistic residencies to an evening long show, connecting rivers and communities. Maybe also on your shores?
The first project research phase took place in Bamako in 2021 with generous support by the Complex Scolaire Moderne Adiara, funded by Cercle Culturel Germano-Malien. The second project phase takes place as an artistic research and international networking exchange in the frame of Thoulathy in „All around Culture“, co-funded by the European Union.
Thoulathy - Contes Imbriqués Exchange and Research
A project of the Other Music Academy [OMA]
