WEST AFRICAN DANCE, TOGOLESE TRADITIONS, CONTEMPORARY INTERPRETATIONS
LAB: 17 & 18 September | 14:30 – 18:30h
PERFORMANCE: 19 September | 19h
Koffi-Kégou Afiadegnigban was born in 1991 in Lomé, Togo. In 2009, he joined the dance company AMENOUVEVE, where he received his first professional training in traditional Togolese dance. In 2018, he moved to Burkina Faso, where he studied contemporary dance at the choreographic development centre La Termitière. After obtaining his degree in 2021, Koffi-Kégou has worked with many renowned choreographers, including Salia Sanou, Bienvenue Bazié, François Verret, Chantal Loïal, Serge Aimé Coulibaly, and others. He won first prize at the Pan-African solo choreography competition Africa Simply the Best in 2023 with his spectacle La Quatrième, and subsequently toured the piece in Africa and Europe. Afiadegnigban is counted among the most talented dancers-choreographers of his generation on the African continent. He lives and works between Lomé and Brussels. IG: @afiadegnigbankoffi || FB: koffi.afiadegnigban.39
ROOTS IN MOTION
LAB: 17 & 18 September | 14:30 – 18:30h
In this workshop, Koffi-Kégou Afiadegnigban invites participants to explore contemporary dance through a choreographic vocabulary rooted in Togolese dance tradition. Both his pedagogy and artistic practice are based on the reinterpretation of elements from various danced rituals in a contemporary style. The workshop is aimed at professional dancers and amateurs curious to discover the energy, rhythms, and symbolism of Togolese dance while experimenting with their personal corporeal expression. The principal objective is twofold: to familiarize participants with the fundamentals of Togolese dance tradition (anchoring, musicality, symbolism) and to experiment with contemporary dance creation tools based on these fundamentals.
LA QUATRIÈME
PERFORMANCE: 19 September | 19h, DOUBLE BILL with Omer Keinan
La Quatrième is a spiritual journey on which I embarked to reconnect with my history, revive my demons and exorcise them. While drifting back in time, I try to question my past, understand my present and better prepare for my future.
Choreography: Koffi-Kégou Afiadegnigban
Performed by: Koffi-Kégou Afiadegnigban
Outside eye: Salia Sanou, Fabien Privoil
Light design: Petit Duevi – TSIBIAKU36
Sound design: Comlanvi Adjamla Ivalmok
Music: Shackleton & Andreas Gerth Music for the quiet hour; Forest Swords Shrine West
Production : CDC la Termitière, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Co-Production : Goethe Institut Ouagadougou – Burkina Faso
Collaboration: Sol’œil d’Afrik, Lomé, Togo
Technical director: Hermann Coulibaly
Administration, coordination, communication: Marta Bigus (Art is the Way)