Startin Point Festival – an exciting new festival curated by Hakeem “Mr Impact” Onibudo celebrates the connection between music and dance of the African Diaspora. 19-21 October 2018 at The Place, London.
Sounds and rhythms from Africa have been moving us for generations. Blues, Reggae, Jazz, Funk, Disco, Hip-Hop, House. Our bodies have responded very differently to these various genres of music, creating an extremely rich and diverse movement vocabulary.
Over three days, Startin’ Point Festival will showcase work that honours the African heritage. It will celebrate the contribution of national and international artists to this legacy and encourage the youth to find their voice and push the boundaries of expression.
Hakeem Onibudo says: ‘Startin’ Point represents a brand new exciting interactive 3-Day festival that honours the legacy of the connection of music and dance of the African Diaspora. I am very excited to provide an opportunity for international, national and youth companies to have a strong voice in this particular context and provide a quality environment for anyone and everyone to come down to watch, celebrate and dance.’
Startin’ Point Festival. Photo by Foteini Christofilopoulou
Full Programme information
Friday, 19 October will see a performance by Untold, a unique cultural organisation based in Amsterdam which differentiates itself from other art institutions by its clear connection between African Diaspora art forms and traditions and western art forms. Untold’s artistic expression seeks to challenge the boundaries within theatre and dance by exploring experimental and risky themes. The main part of their programme will be a 30-minute performance of Konfo which is based on Surinamese culture and is an exciting cocktail of dance, drumming and singing.
Saturday, 20 October, the festival gets interactive with a very exciting audience vote opportunity. At Startin’ Point Comissions Platform, three UK artists, previously shortlisted from over 25 applications, will perform a short work each. Audiences will be able to cast their vote for the audience appreciation prize of £1000 on the night. A panel of industry experts will then decide on the work they feel has the greatest potential for future development. The winning choreographer will be given significant financial support and mentorship to develop the presented work into a longer piece and to find opportunities to present it across the UK in 2019/2020.
The evening will also feature an extract from Uchenna Dance’s critically acclaimed The Head Wrap Diaries.
Sunday, 21 October, will see the continuation of the Arts Council founded national project FUTURE4YOUTH, an initiative started 3 years ago to look at the connection between hip-hop dance and dances of the African Diaspora through the voice of youth. The six national youth companies that took part in the project will each present a brand new piece of work to form an eclectic mixed bill.
Konfo
Wrap Around Activities
Startin’ Point Festival is completed with a variety of wrap around activities including a House Dance Workshop with In Da House UK, and African Dance Workshop led by Funmi Adewole, an exhibition, panel discussion and a dance battle. The workshops are ticketed separately.
House Dance Workshop with In Da House (£20) – Sat 20 Oct, 11am-2pm
Exhibition (Free Entry) – Sat 20 Oct, 11am-8pm
Discussion with guest panellists (Free but booking essential) – Sat 20 Oct, 4pm-6pm
African Dance Workshop led by Funmi Adewole (£15) – Sun 21 Oct, 10am-12pm
Kre8 Battle with FUTURE4YOUTH fringe performances (Free) – Sun 21 Oct, 12pm-4pm
Combo Pass All performances can be booked separately (Tickets £17/£13 concession on Fri &Sat, £14/£9 concession Sun) or via a Combo Pass combining the Fri ticket with either Sat or Sun shows for £27. The Combo Pass does not include the workshops.