“I wanted to put into proximity these two movement histories”: Jeremy Nedd and Impilo Mapantsula

American-Swiss choreographer Jeremy Nedd and South African Pantsula dance collective Impilo Mapantsula began collaborating during Jeremy’s residency in Johannesburg in 2017. What emerged from this was the critically acclaimed work “The Ecstatic”, which brings together the movement language and histories of Pantsula dance and the praise break from the Black Pentacostal Church. This was followed by the speculative work “How a falling star lit up the purple sky”, which explores new stories and myths for the Western cinematic genre through the prism of pantsula’s rich culture. The artists brought both works on tour in southern Africa in 2022.

In this video by Bubblegum Club created in the context of an editorial residency connected to our programme, the artists reflect on their work together and intersecting interests, as well as what has shifted through the process.