How to escape the traps of systems of representation and visibility? Leandro Souza, who comes from Brazil and lives and works in Amsterdam, researched the idea of escape. He based his search on the legacy of resistance and confrontation of his African ancestors from sub-Saharan regions, who were transformed into commodities, enclosed, and forced into centuries of degrading labor. Their history provided Souza with choreographic approaches from an expanded perspective, and pointed the way for refusing the forces flattening the experience of life today.
Souza: “Escape is a muse that insists on whispering in our ears at a time when we have been convinced to wish for our own capture. It continues to inspire the (re)invention of ways of living, doing, seeing and thinking about existence beyond what is known, asking questions: is there no alternative? Is this where we wanted to go? Do we want to run away from everything? Escape from what? When, how and with whom?”
One tactic for escape is entanglement. Souza uses it to create a choreographic dynamic between body and word. His solitary body moves through the space, uttering excerpts from song lyrics, philosophical texts, and quoting prominent figures from Western culture. All the while, he performs gestures and movements from the worldwide dance archive, from both the global center and periphery. In disrupting the program in our minds, by breaking the rigid grammatical structures of spoken or embodied language, Souza opens up possibilities for reinvention.
Award
- São Paulo Art Critics Association Award (Brazil) for performance in the solo work Sismos e Volts (2018) VandenEnde Foundation gran
Interview
VandenEnde foundation interviewed artist Leandro Souza about this performance and his practice. Read the Dutch interview here.
Leandro: “Through my work, I mainly try to establish a dialogue with the audience. I am an artist who wanders around, but also dives deep into something; who is close to his own time and out of step at the same time. Contradictions are central. So I think my message is not so much a particular lesson, but more the fact that the way we see reality is not the only or best way.”
Review
Moos van den Broek wrote about Musa insistente on Theaterkrant: “fascinating solo reveals ingrained western values”. Read the full review here.
Topic Talk
Leandro Souza is taking part in the Topic Talk Ownership & (De)colonial practices on May 31 from 15:30 tot 16:30 in Theater Kikker.
This performance is made possible by:
