17th MACAO ARTS
FESTIVAL
A Showcase of Cultures
11 March to 1 April
The
first circus in Africa has multicultural roots. The French planted the seed in
Guinea-Conakry and it was not long before the circus arts were flourishing
within the heart of Africa. Circus Baobab is the product of this fusion. This
troupe of performers now comes to Asia and will kick off the 17th MACAO ARTS
FESTIVAL this Saturday in Sai Van Lake Square.
The long branches of a baobab tree are both
scenery and set for the Guinean circus. In this, their regional debut, Circus
Baobab promises to draw quite a crowd to the first day of the 17th
MACAO ARTS FESTIVAL, and admission is free. Entitled Suaidieu’s Monkey,
the show is an example of cultural fusion in which the circus arts and African
traditions become one.
Trained in Guinea with Circus Baobab, also a
circus arts academy, over 20 musicians, acrobats, trapeze artists,
contortionists, dancers and jugglers, will ascend a giant baobab 15 metres high
in an expression of their culture and circus traditions.
The show takes its inspiration from the ancient
Guinean legend of the drumming monkey. As the story goes, a hunter fascinated
with the sound of the drumming monkey’s djembe caught the creature to get
hold of his drum, an instrument that humans had only heard but not seen. The
hunter turned the monkey loose and took the stolen djembe back to his
village, where the achievement caused a big fuss. He was called a hero and given
the hand of the village chief’s daughters in marriage.
In the show that will be presented to the Macau
public, Circus Baobab’s story is based on the Guinean legend, but its techniques
are those of the European circus, in the French tradition to be precise.
This project was born in 1998, and the company
became the first aerial circus on the African continent.
The
establishment of Circus Baobab owes a great deal to the French cinematographer
Laurent Chevalier. He got to know Guinea-Conakry through the lens of his camera
and became interested in making a film about the circus in this nation, where
music, dance and acrobatic are so important to its people, but there was no
circus tradition in the country – not even in Africa - so he ended up founding a
new company instead. Chevalier saw in Guinea-Conakry a potential for the fusion
of African and European arts and cultures, so he rolled up his sleeves and
dedicated his efforts to making the project a reality. In addition to producing
the circus it was also necessary to train the performers in the art.
In collaboration with Telivel Diallo, in charge
of the Guinean cultural element, and Pierrot Bidon, founder of Circus Archaos
and an expert on movement in contemporary French circus, Chevalier undertook the
training of the artists, acrobats and musicians. Some of the finest experts in
France in the fields of juggling, trampoline and aerial acrobatics were called
in to train the young Guineans, giving them the technical ability to then
interpret the stories of their own culture.
By the spring of 2000 the group had come into its
own. Within its ranks are performers of all ages, from 12 to 70 years of age.
After proving their talents at home, Circus Baobab hit the road, bringing their
unique brand of cultural fusion first to France, and then to other European
countries.
This is the story of Circus Baobab – a company
founded from the National Guinean Acrobatics Centre. They now make the great
leap to Asia. Demonstrating in Macau how two cultures can unite under one
artistic goal, Circus Baobab sets an example for artists in our modern,
globalized world.
CULTURAL AFFAIRS BUREAU
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Circus Baobab (Guinea-Conakry)
Saudieu’s Monkey
11/3 (Saturday) - 8pm
Sai Van Lake Square
Duration: approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes, no interval
Director: Pierrot Bidon
Director, Technical and Stage Supervisor: Mory Diallo Tec
Administration/ Production Director: Isabelle Sage
Choreography: Ibrahima Coumbassa
Music: Wandel Soumah
Costumes : Daouda Camara
Light: Jean-Marie Prouveze
Sound: Benoît Rousseau
Partners since 1999:
AFAA / Programme Afrique en créations - Ministère des Affaires Etrangères,
Agence Intergouvernementale de la Francophonie, UNESCO, Prince Claus Fund,
Service de la Coopération Culturelle de l’Ambassade de France en Guinée, Centre
Culturel franco-guinéen, CODEV, CCAS EDF-GDF, CM CAS, Cirque-Théâtre d’Elbeuf et
ville d’Elbeuf, Circuits – Scène conventionnée Auch, Ecole Nationale de Cirque
de Châtellerault, Mondomix.