Dancing with purpose

The dance community continues to experience loss. Following the death of iconic dancer-choreographer, Dada Masilo, we now mourn the sudden death of dance practitioner, David April. Having started and advancing his career at the legendary Moving Into Dance Mophatong dance company, April had a multifaceted approach to dance as a choreographer, dancer, teacher, arts administrator, mentor and photographer — documenting dance for the sheer pleasure. He boasted a large archive of dance photography, some of which was curated for an exhibition at the launch of the Joburg Moves season at the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) arts and culture centre in 2024.

His legacy is his generous spirit, which saw him share his creativity, taking many students under his wing as a mentor. There are a number of choreographers and dancers who have been moulded by his hand.

“One of the things he taught me is to move with purpose. Although he meant this in the context of movement and dance, I have extended it by moving with purpose in life,” said one of his mentees and star choreographer and dancer, Smangaliso Ngwenya in an interview with the SABC.

Together they created works such as Evelyn, exploring the essence of motherhood, nurturing and home — choreographed and performed by Ngwenya under April’s artistic direction. Before that April can be remembered for facilitating and creating Mnquma with dancer, choreographer and vocalist Xolisile Bongwana — a beautiful work that delves into cultural heritage. He had a gift for unearthing the beauty of people’s humanity and stories through dance.

April represented community in his unreserved support of dance. He believed it to "activate the holistic self intelletually, emotionally, physically, socially, aesthetically, creatively and spiritually," according to a tribute statement from the University of Pretoria's School of the Arts where he taught. 

It’s something to think about and advocate for as we look at some of the dance highlights from the National Arts Festival’s (NAF) curated programme. We turn to dance again — even after loss — as dancers are compelled by their stories, activism and issues to move with purpose.

Here are the NAF dance programme highlights:

Izithukuthuku: The Tattered Soul of the Worker 

By VAP Dance Academy, Theatre & Studios, Vusi Mdoyi, Jeremy Nedd & Phala Ookeditse Phala

Izithukuthuku explores the traumatic diminution of the migrant worker. Using the percussive sound and rhythms that conjure the industrialisation of the city, this production lends itself to some indigenous dances that draw parallels to stepping by depicting aural and sonic grammars of urban life.

Venue: Rhodes Theatre

Tickets: R120

Ages: All ages

Kemet — Black Lands / Alkamal Walkamal Almutlaq — Completeness and Absolute Wholeness

By Asanda Ruda

Kemet — Black Lands is a powerful solo dance work by 2025 Standard Bank Young Artist for Dance Asanda Ruda that traverses the complex terrain of generational alienation, political defiance, and personal emancipation. Rooted in Afro-contemporary expression, the piece explores the layered intersections of space, politics and culture, offering a deeply embodied protest of the self. Moving beyond the confines of inherited cultural frameworks, Ruda challenges conformity and asserts an audacious, self-defined identity.

Venue: Rhodes Box

Tickets: R80

Ages: All ages

Portals and petals; the subtle alchemy of my grandmother’s dreams...

By Jazzart Dance Theatre and Musa Hlatshwayo

Choreographed by the 2018 Standard Bank Young Artist for Dance Musa Hlatshwayo, Portals and Petals is a recollection; a connection between dreams and realities. It is a portal to the creator’s inherited visions; a look at the complex manifestation of their gradual evolution. It is introspective work that pays homage to ancestral lineages that shape and provide healing for the individual through spiritual realms.

Venue: Rhodes Theatre

Tickets: R110

Ages: Parental guidance

Road

By Oscar Buthelezi

Oscar Buthelezi and Muzi Shili’s award-winning Road is a dance miniature that explores the journeys we take as human beings, highlighting challenges encountered and the sense of achievement at the end. It is Buthelezi’s first professional choreographed work, which won Germany’s Kurt Jooss Prize for emerging dance artists in 2016. It still enthrals with its humanity and strong foundations of Afro-fusion popularised by the Moving Into Dance Mophatong dance company.

Venue: PJ’s

Location: Hoërskool PJ Olivier

Ticket price: R80

Ages: All ages

Salt 

By Cape Ballet Africa 

The production celebrates new work by a trio of revered SA choreographers. Salt features ballets by Kirsten Isenberg, multiple award-winning choreographer Mthuthuzeli November and Michelle Reid in a programme that prioritises the commissioning and creation of new SA choreographic works.

An exciting addition to the programme is the performance of George Balanchine’s romantic Allegro Brilliante set to Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No 3. It will be staged for Cape Ballet Africa by Diana White of the George Balanchine Trust, who has spent her lifetime studying, performing, staging and coaching Balanchine’s works.

Venue: Guy Butler Theatre

Location: Monument Building

Tickets: R150

Ages: All ages

The one who stays / Die een wat bly

By Figure of 8 Dance Theatre

The One Who Stays / Die een wat bly is part dream, part testimony. Using the company’s personal memories as a starting point, it sketches the relationship between mothers and their sons. It is a combination of dance and drama that revolves around the narrative of an artist who travels back to his childhood. Dance and physical theatre are supported by text to present loss and the intricate relationship between mothers and their sons on the road to healing.

Venue: Rhodes Box

Location: Rhodes Theatre

Ticket: R110

Ages: 10+

The National Arts Festival happens in Makhanda from June 26 - July 6.