https://www.scmp.com/rss/325127/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Western cultural identity, norms, and traditions have dominated the global art scene for centuries. Colonialism – a policy of acquiring full or partial political, economic, and cultural control over another country – has played a key role in this. Education under colonial rule wasn’t designed to make us Africans think. It was made to make us follow, to turn us into zombies Ayodele Olofintuade, Nigerian author Besides exploiting a country’s resources and people for Western economic gain, the... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2117898/africas-artists-step-shadows-colonialism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2117898/africas-artists-step-shadows-colonialism?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Nov 2017 08:30:30 +0000 From dundun drums and kora harps to ngoni guitars and ghaita flutes, Africa’s musical instrument heritage is as fascinating and diverse as the continent itself. The role of these and other instruments – some simple, others intricate – goes beyond the entertainment factor. Most of them play a fundamental role in local storytelling traditions, cultural rites and official ceremonies. Mountains to mainstream One instrument that speaks most to people’s imagination is the North African ghaita, which... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2115643/musical-flair-celebrating-africas-amazing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2115643/musical-flair-celebrating-africas-amazing?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Oct 2017 01:30:19 +0000 Where a woman rules, streams run uphill, says an ancient Ethiopian proverb, meaning that women are among Africa’s key game-changers. In terms of the continent’s performing arts scene, this couldn’t be truer. Take Angélique Kidjo. Born in Cotonou, Benin, the songstress was the first woman listed as one of “the 40 Most Powerful Celebrities In Africa” by Forbes Magazine. Kidjo – who will perform at the World Cultures Festival on November 3 – has won three Emmys and dozens of regional and global... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2114203/african-women-show-why-they-are-powerful?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2114203/african-women-show-why-they-are-powerful?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Oct 2017 01:46:23 +0000 Africa’s performing arts traditions are as rich, fascinating, and diverse as the continent itself. From Egypt and Nigeria to South Africa, and any other of the 54 countries that lie in between, song, dance, music, and drama – often in combination – have always been the glue that unites, inspires, educates, and entertains the masses. Egypt: performing arts cradle It all started in Egypt some 4,000 years ago, the stage of what can be described as the world’s first theatrical production. This is at... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2113030/cape-cairo-telling-africas-stories-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2113030/cape-cairo-telling-africas-stories-world?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Sep 2017 01:46:59 +0000 Among Africa’s rich line-up of internationally recognised musicians and vocal artists, Angélique Kidjo and Youssou N’Dour top the list. However, there is more to them than their award-winning repertoires. N’Dour is also waging a war against malaria, while Kidjo is fighting to keep African girls in school and also end child marriage. Ahead of their stage performances in Hong Kong in the next two months, we take a closer look at the duo. Kidjo, 57, who has released 12 albums and is the winner... https://www.scmp.com/native/culture/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110927/singing-different-tune-youssou-ndour-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/culture/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110927/singing-different-tune-youssou-ndour-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Sep 2017 01:30:15 +0000 Hutu and Tutsi. Captor and captive. Who is “right” and who is “wrong”. These are some of the themes and contrasts explored in two productions coming to Hong Kong in November. Split/Mixed is a tale of two worlds converged in Eddy, a Belgian-born of Rwandan descent with Hutu and Tutsi parents. The play is based on playwright and actor, Ery Nzaramba’s life and explores what it means to be, quite literally, split/mixed in terms of ethnicity; what it means to have been born in Europe but to have... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110093/shared-humanity-common-theme-african?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110093/shared-humanity-common-theme-african?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Sep 2017 01:45:00 +0000 When you see Senegalese and French dancer and choreographer Germaine Acogny performing on stage, it’s hard to believe that you are watching someone in her 70s. The energy, the power and the moves are as you would expect from a performer in her 20s. But each of Acogny’s performances represents a world view that comes from having lived through a storied life. Her solo Tchouraï, created in 2001 and choreographed by Sophiatou Kossoko, has been enjoyed by audiences in Europe, the US and China. In it,... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110112/mother-modern-african-dance-germaine-acogny?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110112/mother-modern-african-dance-germaine-acogny?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Sep 2017 01:45:00 +0000 In 1999, a delighted Nelson Mandela unexpectedly joined acclaimed South African musician Johnny Clegg and his band Savuka on stage during a performance of their moving anti-apartheid anthem Asimbonanga. YouTube videos of the heart-warming moments when the former South African president dances to the music and asks Clegg to repeat the song have been viewed millions of times. A beaming Mandela can be seen telling concertgoers, “it is music and dancing that make me at peace with the world … and at... https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110090/singing-one-voice-south-african-stories-joy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/native/lifestyle/topics/spotlight-africa/article/2110090/singing-one-voice-south-african-stories-joy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Sep 2017 01:30:30 +0000