NSC Dance Studies In-depth study of an international dance work: 8.1 Describe Vincent Mantsoe's b

Question

8.1 Describe Vincent Mantsoe's background, training and career.
Vincent Mantsoe was born into a family that followed strict African tradition and cultural practices. His mother, grandmother and aunt were sangomas and even though Vincent never became one, he often took part in the dancing and singing aspects of these rituals.
This created a love for ritual dancing and singing in him. 
He spoke to his grandmother so that she could ask for permission from the ancestors to decolonize ritual dance aspects in his pieces.
Mantsoe started dancing at a young age and was part of a dance group called The Joy Dancers. His shows were influenced by the styles of people like Michael Jackson but tried to put their own style to it.
He was also part of 2 groups called Street Dance and the Rathaibule Youth Club.
Mantsoe auditioned for and was accepted into Moving into Dance company run by Sylvia Glasser. He started dancing professionally in 1980.
Sylvia Glasser is well known for her fusion of dance styles (Afro-fusion) and this had a great impact on how Mantsoe choreographed.
Through all of this exposure, he was exposed to many different African and contemporary dance styles.
In 1992 he received his diploma from the Moving into Dance (MID) Community Dance Teacher's Training Program.
He has also taught many professionals and dance teachers in his career.
He now lives in France but returns to South Africa on a regular basis to work with/inspire artists.

8.2 Gula Matari deals with a very specific theme. Explain how this theme was portrayed in the following:
8.2.1 The movement vocabulary and symbolism
The movements in this piece mimic those of birds as the dancer is taken over by the spirit of the bird. Bent joints (arms, legs and body) are used and this way of carrying the body reminds us of the shape of birds and how they move.
There are very few straight lines in nature and the movements reflect that.
The head movements are sharp and quick like a bird.
The shoulders are used with small but sharp movements or rolls. The arms are used as wings which are often moving like that of a bird flying.
The fingers often spread out like feathers.
Jumps are done with bent legs and flexed feet reminding us of the grass and legs of birds.
The movements of the piece are punctuated by moments of stillness, mimicking the birds as they are on the lookout for danger.

8.2.2 The production elements.
Costumes:
The male dancers wear baggy calf-length pants with a bird like design on.
The females wear a short skirt and a bikini-like top made out of the same fabric as the males.
Both male and females are barefoot.
The fabric of the costume creates a camouflaged look. This rings true to what birds do in nature.
Set design:
The stage is bare – allowing the audience to place this dance work in their own imagined environment.
Lighting:
The use of dark blue light that interchanges with a more natural bright light.
A small amount of white light is used from the front-of-house lights to make the faces more visible.
The blue lights are used to symbolize the early morning before sunrise.
The blue light is also used when a moment of danger approaches.
The lighting is used again at the end to symbolize the night time and the end of the piece.
The majority of the dance piece is done in a soft yellow (or even white) light.
This symbolizes daylight and enhances the idea of watching birds in their natural habitat.

8.3 Evaluate how the music enhanced the dance work.
The music was composed by Gabrielle Roth. She was well known for her ability to heal the soul through the use of her music and this ties in well with the spirituality of the dance work.
This particular piece of music focuses a lot on drumming with moments of quietness in between.
It creates an atmosphere of being surrounded by nature.
The moments of quietness in the music compliments and mimics the dance movements beautifully to support the idea of how birds move/possible danger.
The music builds in intensity throughout the dance work and this supports the movements as more dancers (birds) join in the dance.
It then calms down and brings the dancers back to a more focused state as we are left with only a single dancer (bird) onstage.
The composed music is very much an embodiment of music. This is when you can hear the dancers whistle like birds. The fact that they produce the sound themselves links with the idea of being connected to the human body.
These whistling moments are very well to start and finish the dance work thus creating a satisfying ending to the piece.

8.4 Vincent Mantsoe drew on his own heritage and used this as an inspiration for his own choreography.
Do you think Mantsoe's use of his own heritage has had an influence on South African dancers and choreographers? Substantiate your answer.

8.1 Describe Vincent Mantsoe's background, training and career - NSC Dance Studies - Question 8 - 2018 - Paper 1

Worked Solution & Example Answer:8.1 Describe Vincent Mantsoe's background, training and career - NSC Dance Studies - Question 8 - 2018 - Paper 1

Describe Vincent Mantsoe's background, training and career.

Join the NSC students using SimpleStudy...