samedi 29 novembre 2025, 16h

Culturescapes Performance Day | Prince Toffa: Zogbé. Air

Entrée gratuite, sans réservation
Culturescapes Performance Day: Languages and Movements

The Sahara is all about rhythms. The circadian rhythms of the desert dwellers sync with the rhythms of day breaks and sunsets. The rhythms of the winds set people in to motion. The Sahara is all about languages. The many languages in and around the Sahara move with the people, some of who are nomadic, while others are migrants traversing the desert from south to north in search of better lives. The verbal and non-verbal languages of movement convergein the Saharan space to share stories, reveal secrets, express pain, voice inequalities and injustices, fight for freedom, dance, laugh, and sing. Embracing the diversity of languages and voices spoken in and around the Sahara requires sensitivity and openness.
The Performance Day that closes Culturescapes 2025 Sahara opens a space to meet the Saharan languages and movements through performative walks, guitar music, dance, chants, and meditation by artists from different parts of the African continent. 

 

Prince Toffa: Zogbé. Air (15')

Zogbé is air that evokes the force of fire coming from the sea and Mami Wata, the water deity. It also refers to all marine pollution (plastic waste, tanker waste, cans, etc.), to seas and oceans disrupted and damaged by humans and by global warming. When large waves or tsunamis ravage coasts and lagoons, Zogbé is a prayer that calms this negative energy. It offers a form of resilience. 

Prince Toffa (Benin) creates large sculptural dresses from recycled materials, including cans, cups, wire, bags, plastic bags, and more. Once designed, the artist brings his costumes to life through artistic performances that give a second life to waste materials while telling the story of the artist, his country, and its customs.

 

Bildcredits: Prince Toffa – Zogbé 2025 © ZVG