Anima: A triumph!

There are four things no one is ever going to forget about ‘Anima’.

How we came to see Haymich Olivier and Tuli Shityuwete take a wild stab at producing a ballet but took an emotional and indisputably incredible journey of the soul held high on the wings of the country’s most dazzling dancers instead.

What a joy it is to see notoriously fierce and fantastic front woman Tuli Shityuwete smile.

That moment in which our minds bent in bewilderment when we realised that uber talents Steffen List, Lize Ehlers and Shishani Vranckx were live scoring the feet thumping, jumping and practically perfect production in a succession of moans, groans and whispers right as the action unfolded.

And finally, perhaps most lecherously, how there was a real and present danger of missing the entire evening as our eyes were glued to Odile Müller’s derrière. Which is pert, perfect and mimicked her scene-stealing performance.

All this is stuck in our minds as we recall ‘Anima’. An authentic Namibian ballet which has set the city alight through sheer magnificence, passion and the need for Namibia to feel proud after a year that has seen nothing but bad news.

‘Anima’ is the good news that we have been waiting for. ‘Anima’ is the headline that reads ‘Namibian Contemporary Dance Ready for the World’s Stages’. ‘Anima’ is Namibia enthralled and inspired by itself in a way in which nothing seems derivative or mediocre but rather homegrown and a hell of a lot better than anything we have ever seen before.

The Facebook campaign clogging up our newsfeeds with posters that say “we demand a rerun of Anima” may be mildly annoying but it is simply the after effect of souls still shaken and stirred by what we saw on stage last Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

These posters demand a rerun in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Berlin, New York and Paris. They demand a rerun of humans slinking on stage, mimicking animals in a series of creepily convincing twitches and ripples. Grant Edem falling from grace and back again in squirming limbs, impeccable solos and awe inspiring intensity. Trixie Munyama defining beauty and grace in her flawless moves from shuddering witch doctor to elegant healer in dance duets with Tuli Shityuwete so captivating and original, many came to see them again. They canvas for the minimalist and beautifully lit stage, which demanded everything from dancers Odile Müller, Elago Akwaake, Justina Andreas, Angelo Jobs, Kandi Shihengo, Oliver Stoffels and Vetunyona Uariye who never let it down.

Not when they were twitching and traipsing like animals. Not when they danced so wild and well that they seemed to conjure elaborate scenes while their feet thumping just about inspired us to imagine we saw dust rising high into the air, staining designer Taati Sibolile’s whirling, twirling skirts.

The only complaint is that synchronising demands that dancers be synchronised. This has been said before and it must be better. Every foot must fall as one, every hand held high must do so in crisp unison. That said, this meeting of traditional dance, contemporary dance and ballet is a triumph. From its almost political and somewhat sensual duets between male dancers, to its daring live score in which Lize and Shishani are like ancestral spirits singing the night.

I saw this production on two nights, both received a standing ovation. Opening night inspired a spontaneous chant of “Anima! Anima! Anima!” but the moment I really knew it was good was when I saw the construction workers. The Chinese builders who left their scaffolding at the inspired outdoor venue of NIPHAM amphitheatre to film and watch ‘Anima’ from the sidelines. Because we all know Chinese people don’t stop work for flood, famine or end of days.

– @marth_vader on Twitter