He comes from a rich lineage of ubungoma (traditional healing) which is central to his dance making ethos. He transposes the ceremonial elements of connecting with ancestral spirits for the receipt of knowledge, joy, healing and direction into his work.
Out of this, he created his ground-breaking technique called Koba, which fuses indigenous African dance, martial arts and contemporary movement. The word Koba conjures up a memory for Mantsoe. His grandmother would spontaneously — in the middle of a chore — bend her body forward to be in communion with her ancestral spirits and moments later return to herself anew.
His dance residences early in his vocation took Mantsoe to Asia and Australia, where he found affinity in the cultural ways of the Australian aboriginal people and the Japanese whose influences also form part of his signature. His dance is a language of respect — for the ancestors, the work, the process and its gifts. With each creation, he consults his spiritual guides for permission and guidance.
Mantsoe’s graduation solo from Moving into Dance’s training programme, Gula in 1993 — which is now an Afro-fusion classic — is inspired by the pigeons in his grandmother’s Soweto backyard. His early repertoire comprises autobiographical solos that include Phokwane (1998), Motswa-Hole (2001) and KonKoriti (2016). His recent works such as Koma (2022) and Izilo (2023) look at the psychology of manhood in relation to African sociology, culture and rites of passage.
Vincent Mantsoe’s desert dance: A language of respect
The dancer’s new work contemplates the extremes of a desert in a spiritually heightened and immersive way
Image: Christo Doherty
When Vincent Mantsoe performs, he doesn’t dance alone. He moves with spiritual company that allows his body to be host to different dimensions in one space.
With his latest solo work, Desert Poems — premiering at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) this week — he contemplates the dichotomous extremes of a desert landscape in a spiritually heightened and immersive manner.
Being grounded to the present while fully immersed in realms that can induce states of deep trance is a mindful skill in control that he has mastered — combining sacred ritual with choreographic performance.
The spirituality of dance
Through considered and contemplative movement, he echoes French sociologist and philosopher Jean Baudrillard’s idea that “the desert is the natural extension of the inner silence of the body,” while embodying the landscape’s harsh and beautiful essence.
It’s a privilege to behold but it can be tough on the body. The soft launch of Desert Poems at the My Body My Space public arts festival in Mpumalanga in March revealed a very drained Mantsoe at the end of the performance.
And I suspect the role of the audience, aside from taking in the transformative experience, is to help anchor the performer who time travels in dance.
He keeps doing the work because, “It’s the nature of who we are. And there’s a healing process that takes place. I feel free afterwards,” Mantsoe said.
Image: Val Adamson
He comes from a rich lineage of ubungoma (traditional healing) which is central to his dance making ethos. He transposes the ceremonial elements of connecting with ancestral spirits for the receipt of knowledge, joy, healing and direction into his work.
Out of this, he created his ground-breaking technique called Koba, which fuses indigenous African dance, martial arts and contemporary movement. The word Koba conjures up a memory for Mantsoe. His grandmother would spontaneously — in the middle of a chore — bend her body forward to be in communion with her ancestral spirits and moments later return to herself anew.
His dance residences early in his vocation took Mantsoe to Asia and Australia, where he found affinity in the cultural ways of the Australian aboriginal people and the Japanese whose influences also form part of his signature. His dance is a language of respect — for the ancestors, the work, the process and its gifts. With each creation, he consults his spiritual guides for permission and guidance.
Mantsoe’s graduation solo from Moving into Dance’s training programme, Gula in 1993 — which is now an Afro-fusion classic — is inspired by the pigeons in his grandmother’s Soweto backyard. His early repertoire comprises autobiographical solos that include Phokwane (1998), Motswa-Hole (2001) and KonKoriti (2016). His recent works such as Koma (2022) and Izilo (2023) look at the psychology of manhood in relation to African sociology, culture and rites of passage.
Image: Supplied
The concept for Desert Poems came through to the renowned SA-born and France-based dancer-choreographer in a dream and conceptualised in June 2024. But the inspiration was planted by a documentary project he did for BBC that involved travelling to the Namib Desert many years ago.
“I remember the scorching sun and the harshness of the desert. But there was beauty in the transformative moments of being alone — not lost in the vast open space — but being on a spiritual journey. I was put inside the sand for the UK television production and I wanted to capture the warmth, the heat, the breathtaking landscape, the solitude and the overall energy for Desert Poems,” Mantsoe said.
“My work is about the spiritual nature and physicality of a human being and our connection to nature. Desert Poems goes back to those roots.”
A beautiful attraction of the work is its soundscape, which features Mantsoe’s own music compositions. It’s a combination of ambient sounds and the music of Africa’s traditional vibrancy. The homecoming performance at UJ will include additional music from Xhosa traditional music artist and cultural historian, Dizu Plaatjies and his Ibuyambo Ensemble.
Desert Poems will be staged on April 11 and 12 at the Keorapetse William Kgositsile Theatre at the UJ Arts Centre in Auckland Park, Joburg.
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