Afrika! Afrika!

Afrika! Afrika!
Name	Afrika! Afrika!
Genre	Contemporary circus, variety show
Created by	André Heller
Country of origin	Austria
Original language	German
Premiere	2006
Notable cast	Mohamed Ali, Tommy Mystic, Wango, Fly, Les Lions de Kabré
Producers	André Heller, Thomas Rauscher

Afrika! Afrika! is a contemporary circus and variety stage production conceived and produced by André Heller. The spectacle blended acrobatics, dance, music, and theatrical staging drawn from a wide range of African traditions and international contemporary performance practices, touring major cities across Europe, North America, and Asia. The production featured ensembles of performers from multiple African Union member states alongside collaborators from Austria, Germany, and France, and was staged in arenas, theatres, and temporary big tops.

Overview

The show presented an amalgam of choreographic forms and spectacle inspired by artists and traditions associated with Egypt, Ethiopia, Senegal, Mali, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Mozambique, Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion, Cabo Verde, Benin, Togo, Chad, Central African Republic, Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, Djibouti, Comoros, São Tomé and Príncipe, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo and performers drawn from diasporic communities linked to France, United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Austria and Italy. It foregrounded individual virtuosi alongside large ensemble sequences and was notable for commissioning original compositions and bespoke visual installations.

Production and Creators

The concept originated with André Heller working with producers including Thomas Rauscher and creative directors drawn from the contemporary circus world such as collaborators who had worked with Cirque du Soleil, Les Arts Sauts, Compagnie Philippe Genty, Sacrebleu, and independent choreographers from Mamadou Diabaté-related networks. Costume and set design involved designers who had previously contributed to productions at institutions like the Vienna State Opera, Komische Oper Berlin, Théâtre du Châtelet, Palais Garnier, and festivals including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Avignon Festival. Producers negotiated logistics with venue operators such as Madison Square Garden, O2 Arena, Olympiahalle (Munich), La Défense Arena, Wembley Arena, and municipal agencies in cities including Vienna, Hamburg, Berlin, Zurich, Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris, London, Barcelona, Rome, Milan, Istanbul, Beijing, Tokyo, Toronto, Montreal, New York City, and Los Angeles.

Show Format and Acts

The programme assembled discrete acts—high-wire stunts, aerial silks, contortion, juggling, and group dances—interwoven with narrative tableaux and live music. Featured performers included circus artists and ensembles associated with companies like Dynamo Circus, Circus Oz, Archaos, NoFit State Circus, The 7 Fingers, and acrobats trained in traditional troupes from Senegalese wrestling federations and Malian griot lineages. Acts often referenced iconography associated with historical polities such as Mali Empire, Songhai Empire, Great Zimbabwe, Kingdom of Kongo, Benin Empire, Kingdom of Axum, and Ashanti Empire while employing contemporary theatrical techniques derived from practitioners linked to Pina Bausch, Tadeusz Kantor, Robert Wilson, and directors from Deutsches Schauspielhaus ensembles.

Tours and Performances

After its debut, the production toured extensively on continent-spanning circuits that included stops at major festivals and arenas: Montreux Jazz Festival, Roskilde Festival, Sziget Festival, Paléo Festival Nyon, Glastonbury Festival, Salzburg Festival, and programming at cultural centres such as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Teatro alla Scala, National Centre for the Performing Arts (China), and the Sydney Opera House. The touring model combined arena bookings, temporary big-top residencies, and limited-run engagements in municipal theatres, negotiated through partnerships with promoters like Live Nation, AEG Presents, Stage Entertainment, DEAG Deutsche Entertainment, and national cultural agencies including British Council and Austrian Cultural Forum.

Music, Costumes, and Visual Design

Musical direction integrated live percussionists, vocalists, and contemporary arrangements referencing popular traditions tied to artists and genres associated with Fela Kuti, Youssou N'Dour, Angelique Kidjo, Salif Keita, Ali Farka Touré, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, King Sunny Adé, Toumani Diabaté, Cesária Évora, Tinariwen, Bonga, and composers active in the world music circuits tied to labels like World Circuit Records and Real World Records. Costume designer credits included practitioners who had staged wardrobes for productions at Royal Opera House, Bayerische Staatsoper, and independent designers experienced with textile artisans from Kente workshops, Bogolanfini dyers, and masquerade traditions linked to Yoruba and Dogon craftspeople. Visual design employed projections, kinetic rigging, and lighting schemes executed by teams with prior credits at Festival Internacional de Benicàssim, Eurovision Song Contest, and large-scale opera productions.

Reception and Criticism

Critics in publications and outlets associated with cultural coverage—reviewers with bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Die Zeit, Le Monde, Corriere della Sera, El País, Der Spiegel, The Telegraph, and Los Angeles Times—offered mixed responses. Praise focused on athleticism and stagecraft, with comparisons to companies like Cirque du Soleil and acclaim reminiscent of large-scale spectacles staged at Expo 2000 and Expo 2010. Criticism engaged with debates championed by scholars and commentators linked to institutions such as SOAS University of London, Harvard University, Columbia University, and University of Cape Town about representation, appropriation, and the politics of staging pan-African themes under European production leadership.

Legacy and Influence

The production contributed to conversations in contemporary performance about cross-cultural collaboration, influencing programming at festivals and institutions including Biennale di Venezia, Documenta, Venice Biennale of Architecture, Performa, Sydney Festival, Next Wave Festival, and national theatres in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, and Morocco. Alumni from the cast went on to work with companies such as Cirque Éloize, Cirque du Soleil, NoFit State Circus, Compagnie XY, and in film and television productions associated with BBC Arts, Arte, HBO, and Netflix. The show remains referenced in discussions of large-scale global spectacles and their cultural, economic, and aesthetic dynamics.

Category:Circus shows Category:Contemporary circus