The Spier Summer Arts Season presents Cargo, a cutting-edge, contemporary dance production which is the 7th in a series of inspired collaborations between two of South Africa's most exciting movement theatre companies, Jazzart Dance Theatre and Magnet Theatre.
 
This collaboration follows on the heels of the acclaimed "Rain in a Dead Man's Footprint" and is a performative engagement with the archives of slavery in the Cape. The title ‘Cargo' is related to human cargo and portrays images of people being shipped around the world reminiscent of the fruitful trade in cargo. Archives mean old bits and pieces and traces that remain from the past which have their own rules of inclusion and exclusion.
 
For so many centuries cargo has been destined for the Cape of Good Hope.  Porcelain, silks, spices and slaves came from Mozambique, Madagascar, from India and the Indonesian archipelago for 186 years between 1652 and 1838. Slaves were a major part of this lucrative trade that existed as well as being the source for the unique and diverse culture that formed the heart of the Cape as we know it today.
 
This work is an attempt to use performance to get at what has been left out.  Through voices and body movements, Cargo re enacts their shattered lives, their abuse and their pain.  The silences in this production make one poignantly aware of the heartache as it renders one silent in ones own space. This act of translation is a clever  way to make people remember what slaves went through during that time and by engaging with the past ones memory becomes active and forms a visual picture base upon which one can weave ones own tapestry of slave events.
 
Today slavery haunts the city. It is a ‘past that will not pass' and yet so little is remembered.  This production seeks out the human elements, the desperate attempt of the slaves to ‘create' a family again, to regain their humanity. It forms a collage of events not necessarily linked by one story, but rather a visual representation of number of different events and emotions.
 
In its support of this project, Spier is engaging with its past. The history of Spier goes back to the early 17th century when the use of slaves for agriculture was common practice. Remnants of this past like the Slave Bell can be viewed on the Estate.  Through its support of the project, Spier is also helping to give a voice to artists who are exploring less conventional aspects of performance, thereby supporting the development of artistic excellence in South Africa. 
 
This is Mark Fleishman at his best, with choreography direction from Alfred Hinkel and musical direction from Neo Muyanga.

The Spier Arts Summer Season Presents: Cargo
Where: Spier Amphitheartre, Spier Wine Estate
When: 24 (Preview), 25 February, 2, 3 & 4 March 2007
Tickets: R 60 (unreserved preview); R 120; R 100; R80
More Info: 021 809 1165


Molo says: "Spier has a variety of events running during the Spier Arts Summer Season. Find out more about Spier's production of Macbeth: The Opera; Spier's Poetry Festival; and the satircal production on everyone's lips, Evita for President!

Find out about more things to do at Spier; Capetownmagazine.com informs you of the range of exciting experiences on offer at this idyllic wine estate just outside Cape Town."