Vincent SK Montsoe new solo work KonKoriti is not to be missed
|||Dancer and choreographer Vincent SK Mantsoe brings his new solo work, ‘KonKoriti’, home to Joburg for one night at the Wits Theatre on Thursday. Diane de Beer asks him about his life and work.
How long have you been based in France?
I have been based in France for 17 years. How has that influenced/changed/evolved your work?Personally, I am still the same Vincent, but artistically I have changed with time, but my philosophy is still the same: “preservation of culture in the 21st century”, with respect for different cultures. The work I create has evolved, but a strong sense of who I am still lives in the art itself.
Where is your dance mind presently?
Presently, I create based on matters and/or ideas that reflect the world as we see it today, be it politically motivated, culturally, identity, or work. I dance/teach at a lot of schools, colleges or primary schools in France, which drives me on a different path of its own, and I do a lot of mentoring as well.
What influenced KonKoriti and what does the title mean?
“KonKoriti” is a Sepedi word. It comes from one of my grandmother’s songs. She used to sing it to us when we were growing up, hence the title refers to a person who always thinks that he or she is greater than everyone and his or her physical presence cannot be matched by others and the final word that he or she gives is mighty. My cousin, who passed away years ago, had a profound belief that he was the king of the streets and pride was in his blood, but he was also fragile in his own terms. Funny, as I look at today’s politics, US presidential nominee Donald Trump presents that ego of being KonKoriti, even though when I created the work, this was not at all related to him; it was before his time.
Could you speak about the dance itself? What can the audience expect?
First, people should expect to sit for 53 minutes looking at one performer dancing, lol! But really, the work is very physical, as I try to weave through different states of physical being, because KonKoriti is about a state of being, the power, control and spiritual exchange between the space and presence of this “being”.
Who will this appeal to? Will first-time Mantsoe audiences understand it?
That is the question, yes. I premiered the work in France and Germany and they got it very well, and since I have not presented my work in South Africa for a long time, it remains a question of how open the public is and, yes, it is possible that the Mantsoe audience will understand.
How can someone who is so rooted in his culture work from the outside?
I was always blessed with deep feelings about culture and that is why, personally and artistically, cultural preservation is something I respect, and working with these roots gives me a chance to dig deeper. I sometimes do have problems in France as they believe that I still mostly address culture. Yes I do, if not, then I am lost. I am still very physical, I am a dancer, it’s a dance.
How long will you still be dancing your own work?
Lol, as soon as my bones say “enough”, but my spirit will continue dancing.
How does creating a solo work for yourself differ from creating one for a company?
Creating a solo is always personal, as I know my body well and I dive deeper into a spiritual realm, with no gear. When creating for a company, the challenges are that I have to think differently about how to introduce something that is not from their own culture, as different dancers may interpret differently. I have to allow myself to accept, understand and modify, so that a dancer feels comfortable, yet challenged.
Could you talk about the use of music and especially, in this piece, both the music and the musicians and how you chose the music. Is it first the music and then the idea/choreography?
I work a lot with music that talks and transports me. It can be traditional music, of any culture, a contemporary or classical composition. I mostly get inspired by an idea, then the music, but I can listen to music six months ahead of time. For KonKoriti, the idea came first. When I spoke to my mother, she laughed at first, as she knew what it entailed. Then the music came, but it took a while to choose the correct composition, so sometimes I created the work without music and finally found a good path between the music and dance.
What does it mean coming back here to perform?
Back to my roots, to inhale both old and new life forms. Home is home, no matter whether I am in France, China, Japan, Canada, US, or on the African continent. Home is home, so it fills me with joy and excitement. Sharing the journey with the South African public is always a blessing for me.
Tickets: R200. They can be purchased through www.webtickets.co.za or R230 at the door. The show on on September 8Thursday starts at 8pm. Facebook: Wits Theatre. Twitter: @Witstheatre1. Website: https://www.wits.ac.za/witstheatre.