British-Caribbean choreographer Jeanefer Jean-Charles MBE reawakens the unwritten language of St.Lucian Patois, telling a story of culture, lost languages, longing and belonging. Of the movement of people across continents and the dialect which is at risk of being lost forever.
Blending captivating traditional folk dance with exhilarating contemporary choreography and an original musical score, Patois celebrates cultures, stories and generations of the past.
Without Walls,
Ralph Kennedy
SUN 12 MAY, 11.30AM & 2PM - NORFOLK & NORWICH FESTIVAL (Norwich)
SAT 18 & SUN 19 MAY, 1PM & 3.15PM - BRIGHTON FESTIVAL (Brighton)
SAT 6 JUL, 4PM & 6.15PM - HAT FAIR (Winchester)
SAT 13 JUL, 5.45PM - NATIONAL THEATRE RIVER STAGE (South Bank, London) - Hosted by Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (GDIF)
SAT 24 AUG, 1PM & 3.30PM - GREENWICH+DOCKLANDS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (GDIF) (Cutty Sark Gardens, Greenwich)
THURS 29 AUG, 1PM & 3.30PM - GREENWICH+DOCKLANDS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (GDIF) (General Gordon Square, Woolwich)
SUN 1 SEPT, 1PM & 3.30PM - GREENWICH+DOCKLANDS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (GDIF) (Abbey Wood Park Playground, Abbey Wood)
SAT 7 SEPT, 2.45PM & 5PM - GREENWICH+DOCKLANDS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (GDIF) - as part of Dancing City (Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, BBC Waterfront, Stratford)
Choreographer: Jeanefer Jean-Charles MBE
Producer: Alison Holder
Composer: Danilo DJ Walde
Designer: Marsha Roddy
Writer: Hassan Mahamdallie
Creative Consultant: Martha Stylianou
Rehearsal Director: Cherilyn Albert
St.Lucia & Patois Consultant: Pearl Jordan
Stage Manager: Cynthia Chika Franklin
Saint Lucian Voices: Auntie Jane, Uncle John, Mr Remy
Songwriter & Vocalist: Lorna Jean-Charles
Costume Assistant: Yunhye Choi
Runner: Lauren Schofield
Creative Dance Artists: Melissa Bravo, Dani Harris-Walter, Oluwaseun Olayiwola, Nosiphiwo Samente, Duja Sinada, David Bennie
Photo credit: Claire Leach
Patois is supported by Without Walls and commissioned by Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (GDIF), Norfolk & Norwich Festival and Brighton Festival.
This powerful and moving dance performance by Artistic Director and Choreographer Jeanefer Jean-Charles MBE is inspired by nineteenth-century studio photographs of black men, women, and children. Exploring a complex, but often forgotten black presence in pre-Windrush Britain, this performance calls attention to previously hidden figures and challenges historical and contemporary perceptions.
The Guardian
Sanjoy Roy
SUN 2 JUN, 1.30PM - Taliesin Dance Days Festival (Swansea)
SAT 13 JUL, 2.15PM - National Theatre River Stage part of Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (London)
FRI 26 JUL, 12.50PM & 5.05PM - Latitude Festival - The Waterfront Stage (Suffolk)
FRI 14 JUL - SUN 16 JUL - Festival Dos Canais (Portugal)
THURS 27 JUL - SUN 30 JUL – Gratis Festival (Antwerp)
SAT 12 AUG – Kensington + Chelsea Festival (Kensington, London)
SAT 30 SEPT – SUN 1 OCT – Bournemouth Arts By The Sea Festival (Bournemouth, Dorset)
SAT 4 NOV - The British Museum (Great Court, London)
FRI 24 JUN - SUN 26 JUN, VARIOUS TIMES - Birmingham International Dance Festival
SAT 2ND JUL - SUN 3RD JUL, VARIOUS TIMES - Handsworth Park (North Birmingham)
SAT 30 - SUN 31 JUL - Merchant City Festival (Glasgow)
SAT 13 - SUN 14 AUG - Kensington and Chelsea Festival (London)
FRI 26 AUG - The Big Feast (Stoke-On-Trent)
SAT 27 AUG, 2.15PM & 6.15PM - Greenwich & Docklands International Festival 2022 (London)
SUN 18 SEPT, 2PM & 4PM - Lancashire Encounter (Preston)
SAT 24 SEPT 12.45PM & 3.30PM - Derby Festé 2022 (Derby)
SUN 16 OCT, 1PM & 3PM - Wilderness Street (Ilford)
29 MAY - Brighton Festival
30 & 31 MAY – Salisbury (Wiltshire Creative)
27 JUN - 101 Outdoor Arts
3 & 4 JUL - Hat Fair (Winchester)
24 & 25 JUL – Milton Keynes International Festival
31 AUG – 2 SEPT - City Of London
10 & 11 SEPT – Greenwich+Docklands International Festival
25 & 26 SEPT - Birmingham Dance International Festival
Artistic Director and Choreographer: Jeanefer Jean-Charles
Producer: Alison Holder
Designer: Marsha Roddy
Composer: Danilo DJ Walde
Poet: Anthony Anaxagorou
Rehearsal Director: Annie-Lunnette Deakin-Foster, Cherilyn Albert
Writer: Hassan Mahamdallie
Creative Consultant: Martha Stylianou
Stage Manager: Cynthia Chika Franklin
Creative Dance Artists: Melissa Bravo, Dani Harris-Walter, Oluwaseun Olayiwola, Nosiphiwo Samente, Duja Sinada
Reserve Dance Artists: Rudzani Moleya, Stefano Addea
Black Victorians is produced and co-commissioned by FESTIVAL.ORG, Brighton Festival, Hatfair and Without Walls and is currently touring across the UK.
Black Victorians is inspired by Black Chronicles – The Missing Chapter, an ongoing archive research programme led by Autograph focused on unearthing nineteenth-century photographs of black presences in Britain.
Black Victorians is accompanied by a display of the Black Chronicles’ Exhibition In A Box presented in association with Autograph, London.
