Fampitaha, fampita, fampitàna
Some 150 years after her death, the shadow of Ranavalona I still hangs over the history of Madagascar. Assuming the throne on the death of her husband in 1828, the woman who came to be known as "the Malagasy Caligula" ruled her country with an iron fist and, having ruled for 33 years, she left behind her a legacy of contrasts, to put it mildly. Historians, especially in Europe, have tried to create a dark legend for her. But what is the true legacy of this powerful woman who never ceased to defend the autonomy of her island against the onslaught of the colonial powers? Isn't it time we demystified what we have learned and told a different story?
Travelling back to Madagascar's fractured past, where part of her roots lie, dancer and choreographer Soa Ratsifandrihana weaves a story she would have loved to hear as a child. She travelled to the island to gather the words of scholars, storytellers and elders, working to defend a long oral tradition that is now under threat. Soa invites us to discover a hybrid, sensory creation in which words, bodies and soundscapes intertwine. It's a raw new language that unlocks the mysteries of Soa's own heritage, and brings ancestral memory to the heart of the present.
A mix of radio storytelling, musical composition and choreographic creation, Soa Ratsifandrihana's new work focuses on the fusion of orality and movement, reminding us that our bodies, like our words, are the bearers of stories.
• Soa Ratsifandrihana is a Franco-Malagasy dancer and choreographer based in Brussels. After dancing for several years with Rosas, Soa presents her first solo in Brussels, entitled g r oo v e. The show has been performed over forty times and continues to tour, including at Kaaitheater. Her work reminds us that our bodies, just like our words, are bearers of stories, and that however we communicate them, they must be told. Soa is an associate artist of Kaaitheater from 2023 to 2025.
a performance by Soa Ratsifandrihana | creation & performance Audrey Merilus, Stanley Ollivier, Joël Rabesolo, Soa Ratsifandrihana | music Joël Rabesolo | sound design Chloé Despax | support questions on transmission & identity Prisca Ratovonasy | dramaturgy Lily Brieu Nguyen | text Sékou Semega | video & archive Valérianne Poidevin | light design Marie-Christine Soma | artistic collaboration on choreography Amelia Ewu | general technique Blaise Cagnac | light technique Diane Guérin | sound technique Guilhem Angot | costumes tba| roduction, diffusion ama brussels – France Morin, assistée de Clara Schmitt | presented by Théâtre Varia, Kaaitheater, Kunstenfestivaldesarts | delegated production Théâtre Varia, ama brussels in collaboration avec Météores | co-productionThéâtre Varia, Kaaitheater, Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Charleroi danse, MC93 — Maison de la Culture de Seine-Saint-Denis, ICI – centre chorégraphique national Montpellier Occitanie / Direction Christian Rizzo, centre chorégraphique national d’Orléans – direction Maud Le Pladec, Le Gymnase-CDCN Roubaix, La Place de la Danse-CDCN Toulouse / Occitanie, Fonds Yavarhoussen, Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, Tanz im August, La Coop asbl, Shelter Prod, A-CDCN (Les Hivernales – CDCN d’Avignon, La Manufacture – CDCN Nouvelle- Aquitaine Bordeaux · La Rochelle, L’échangeur – CDCN Hauts-de-France, Le Dancing CDCN Dijon Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Chorège CDCN Falaise Normandie, Le Pacifique – CDCN Grenoble – Auvergne – Rhône- Alpes, Touka Danses – CDCN Guyane, Atelier de Paris / CDCN, Le Gymnase CDCN Roubaix – Hauts- de-France, POLE-SUD CDCN / Strasbourg, La Place de la Danse – CDCN Toulouse / Occitanie, La Maison Danse CDCN Uzès Gard Occitanie, La Briqueterie CDCN du Val-de-Marne) | residencies ICI – CCN Montpellier Occitanie, La Bellone – Maison du spectacle, Gemeenschapscentrum De Kriekelaar, Université d’Antananarivo, KAAP, Le Gymnase-CDCN Roubaix, Théâtre Varia, CCN d’Orléans | support Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles – Service de la danse, Wallonie-Bruxelles International, ING et Tax Shelter du gouvernement fédéral belge | thanks to Adeline Rosenstein, Dominique Ranaivoson, Naivo, Maria Dogahe, Saïda Augustine, Aina Zo Raberanto, Helihanta Rajaonarison. Merci à mes proches, mes piliers, mes amours
