site.btaDocumentary-dance Performance Gathers German, Romanian, Madagascan Actors in Sofia

Actors from Germany, Romania and Madagascar will present the documentary-dance performance Ramanenjana on October 3 in Sofia, said Derida Stage, host of the event. Simona Deaconescu and Gabi Saranoufi are choreographers of the work, and Mathilde Monnier is mentor. The performers are Gaya Saranoufi, Maria-Luisa Dimulescu and Simona Dabia. The music is by Olombelo Ricky. The costumes are by Cristina Milea/Sarlatan.

In Madagascan, Ramanenjana means something that stiffens you, but also something that makes you stronger. Amidst illness, social unrest and healing rituals, the performance critically discusses several versions of the same mass dance event. After several years of research, Ramanenjana presents the role of dance in society and the possibility that colonialism may have spread misconceptions about an extraordinary movement.

The team of ethnomusicologist and musician Olombelo Ricky, choreographers Simona Deaconescu and Gabi Saranoufi, together with three performers, explore the phenomenon of Ramanenjana using historical texts, dynamic hand gestures and ecstatic movement.