An explosive musical celebration of South African culture, UMOJA guides us through the pounding resonance of early tribal dances to the unabashed physicality of Kwaito - the first post-apartheid music and dance style to emerge from South Africa’s townships.
From the offset, it is impossible to remain immune to the genuine joy flooding out from the stage. Every face, every body is flushed with vitality and blissful exertion. Every step performed as though it were for the first and last time.
The choreography becomes more stimulating as the show progresses, thankfully veering away from the mania of high kicks that pervades the opening numbers and expanding to include frenetic xylophone duets, roaring drum solos and variegated crowd scenes adorned with personality and humour.
It is incredibly refreshing to see such diverse body types in a dance show, and particularly wonderful to watch the women indulging in their curves with purposeful jiggles, booty shakes and shimmies.
On occasion, the seriousness of a piece and the importance of its message are lessened by the cast’s irrepressible grins and keenness to entertain. This is most notable in the section highlighting AIDS awareness (identifiable mainly owing to the red ribbons on the girl’s t-shirts) and in the song sung by the men, Ngikhonzele, about having sent letters to loved ones without receiving a reply - that the lack of replies are due to the apartheid and poor postal services in rural areas remains hidden beneath a gloss of smiles.
But these are small qualms lost in the tide of happiness that frequently washes over the auditorium. I doubt you’ll see anything more energetic, colourful and joyous on the London stage this month.
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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