DOUBLE BILL (Ronse)

Michel Kiyombo and Lucas Katangila made two spectacular stage creations in which they discuss their Congolese roots and look for answers to life's questions. Their performances are shown in the form of a Double Bill.

Michel Kiyombo with Matchombe

Michel Kiyombo is a maker, dancer and actor. He had already undergone intensive dance training with Faustin Linyekula, and his solo 'Masu Kaino' was supported by his arts center Les Studios Kabako (Congo). Michel also danced in 'Toxuvan Momar N'Diaye', in 'Debout' by Djino Alolo, in 'Le manteau' by Tchekpo Dan Agbetou. In Belgium Michel appeared in 'Le sacre du Printemps' (les ballets C de la B), 'Sur les traces de Dinozord' by Faustin Linyekula.  He co-choreographed the reworking of Akram Khan's 'Giselle' in collaboration with kunstZ and gives dance workshops in De Grote Post.

Matchombe is a dance performance in which Michel looks back on his own childhood in Congo, his return to Belgium and in the meantime discovers fatherhood. On stage, he tells the story of his birth and how he came to earth as a small, vulnerable being. Through dance he grows into the man he is today. But what remains of the frailty in him? Now he is a father himself, but what about his vulnerability?

CONCEPT AND GAME Michel Kiyombo MUSIC Youness Unik COACHING Tijen Lawson and Greet Vissers TRANSLATION Greet Vissers and Somalia Williamson PRODUCTION kunstZ.

Lucas Katangila with Ndoto

Lucas Katangila is a choreographer, dancer, interpreter and performer, born in Goma North Kivu/Eastern DR Congo. He aspires to meet people, share dance styles from different cultures around the world and bring a united Africa from central to east and west, from south to north Africa and Europe. His passion for hip hop, contemporary and traditional African dance has its origins in his native country. From the age of six he came into contact with the arts within the Mboka Dance Family in his grandfather's kingdom, where he became acquainted with dance and playing African instruments such as djembe, likembe, kalumbatini, marimba, dungu and kinubi.

Ndoto tells a story, my story that I want to share in a country where I discover the freedom to express myself.

Born in Goma, North Kivu/DRC, I didn't speak, I danced. I took from my body my daily reality that I did not understand. And the more I danced, the more my mind was liberated, the better I breathed. I calmed my tensions, my doubts, my fears, I healed my wounds and I found hope and even the joy of life.

When I was eight, I was lucky enough to be "hidden" in a small village, far from the city, so as not to be kidnapped by militias and become a child soldier. This was not the case for many other children, my friends and cousins. Today, sixteen years later, nothing has changed, nothing has evolved and my heart is torn by the lack of importance given to the poor and their exploitation. This star, which protected me, made it possible for me to live for several years in permanent contact with the forest, the land of my ancestors.

I grew up in total harmony with nature and the ancestral traditions. I learned the importance of the present moment, instinct, mental strength to survive in this world where economic brutality is all-powerful and a chicken's life is worth more than a child's.”

CONCEPT, CHOREOGRAPHY & DANCE Lucas Katangila PRODUCTION & ADVICE Ariane Lorent SOUNDTRACK Pablo Machine DECOR & LIGHT Ariane Lorent,  Lucas Katangila

>> Buy your tickets here!