Dance Labs 1- Rituals for Decolonization (with Fazle Shairmahomed)
Healing is communal, healing is spiritual, healing is in the body and in spaces in between, healing is to be in harmony with plants and nature. “What do you feel when you think about the spiritual power of plants and ancestry?”
A Lab aiming to develop a personal and communal understanding of human and plant ancestry through spiritual practices of body movement, dance, meditation, writing, altar making and group conversation. What could communal healing look like in a society that is in part (being) shaped by colonial mechanisms?
Dance Labs 2 – Rituals for Holding Space (with Fazle Shairmahomed)
Exploring different roles within a ritualistic context. How to step in and out of trance, connect and hold space for others? Continuing to build on elements that have been present at the altar, crafting them into ways that could invite larger groups of people in. A Lab open to those who are interested in holding space during the public performance dance rituals.
Henna Lab (with Anima Jhagroe-Ruissen in collaboration with Fazle Shairmahomed)
A Lab about the creation of stories in collaboration with Henna/Mehndi. Storytelling and Henna come together in a ritualistic space. We will explore the different stages of Henna, from leaves, to powder, to paste. Exploring communal designs for the performance dance rituals.
Incense Lab (with Farah Rahman in collaboration with Fazle Shairmahomed)
A Lab is about the creation of Incense. Participants are invited to develop their awareness of spices that resonate with them, and to reflect on how they have come into their lives. What migration histories do these spices carry with them? Are they connected to childhood memories? Are they connected to painful histories of cultural appropriation and exploitation? How can we give new meaning in a communal process by creating incense with these spices? Making a few different combinations of incense sticks, some of which people take home, leaving enough to be used during the Labs and performance dance rituals.
