Via Katlehong - Marco da Silva Ferreira & Amala Dianor Via Injabulo South Africa / Portugal / Senegal / France

The award-winning Via Katlehong was formed in 1992 as a community troupe. The company was composed of youths from the township of Katlehong in the East Rand – a notorious war zone during the 1980s uprising in South Africa. After coming together to keep away from the criminality raging in their township, the company which is now comprised of 18 professional dancers and a community dance school, are led by Steven Faleni and Buru Mohlabane.  

During Apartheid in South Africa, many of the country’s black population were relocated to townships in urban zones. They became reservoirs for cheap labour, with unemployment and illegal activity providing a catalyst for a new explosive culture: Pantsula. It quickly became a lifestyle including fashion, music and dance, with each township creating its own version to express angst and joy. 

Still based in a township, Via Katlehong bring authenticity to the art form as well as reinventing it by adding steel caps to their shoes. Traditional whistles, shouting, clapping and the rebellious attitude of Pantsula mix with tap, Gumboot and steps to give this company their unique identity. 

Via Katlehong have won many awards including FNB Vita Dance, Dance Umbrella awards, Gauteng Dance Showcase, KTV Most Brilliant Achievement and Gauteng MEC Development Award. 

Credit José Caldeira

Born in Santa Maria de Feira in 1986, Marco da Silva Ferreira is a choreographer who has earned international recognition for his work. He began his career as a professional performer in 2008 and graduated from Instituto Piget, Gaia with a degree in physiotherapy in 2010. He has danced with renowned artists such as André Mesquita, Hofesh Shechter and Sylvia Rijmer in various works, including Fall and Se alguma vez precisares da minha vida, vem toma-a. In 2014, he served as a movement assistant on the theatre piece Hamlet by Mala Voadora. 
 
Marco’s unique choreography is characterised by his exploration of dance in urban contexts, with a focus on abstract expressionism and self-biographical themes. He has gained recognition for his works, including HU(R)MANO (2013) and Bisonte (2019). HU(R)MANO was highlighted by Aerowaves Priority Companies in 2015 and was performed at various international festivals. Bisonte premiered in 2019 at the Teatro Municipal do Porto and has been performed in Brussels, Lisbon and Montemor-o-novo. 
 
In addition to his work as a choreographer, Marco has also served as an associated artist at the Teatro Municipal do Porto in 2018/19 and the Centre chorégraphique National de Caen in Normandie from 2019 to 2021. Marco’s innovative and captivating approach to dance has earned him praise from the international dance community and cemented his place as one of the most exciting choreographers of his generation. 

Credit Jérome Bonnet

Amala Dianor’s passion for dance started in hip hop, which led him to the prestigious CNDC school in Angers, graduating in 2002. Over the next ten years, he performed in various dance forms including hip hop, neo-classical, contemporary, and afro‐contemporary. He founded his own company in 2012, showcasing his distinct dance style, identifiable by his ease of sliding from one technique to another, a hybrid approach to shape, and a poetic approach to the issue of ‘otherness’.

Dianor collaborates with electro-soul composer Awir Léon and other choreographers, composers, writers and visual artists. His latest works include a nine-dancer piece called The Falling Stardust, and two short pieces, Point Zéro and Wo-Man, a feminine version of his solo Man Rec.

In 2021, Dianor began working with visual artist Grégoire Korganow, and they created a series of short films called CinéDanse, with the first episode, Nioun Rec in collaboration with FranceTV, being selected for the Villa Albertine dance film catalogue in the USA.  

Dianor was also selected and supported by the Big Pulse Dance Network (Creative Europe) in 2022. He created Siguifin, a collective creation with the choreographers Ladji Koné, Alioune Diagne, and Naomi Fall, for nine dancers from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Senegal, and has committed to training pre-professional dancers in France and Western Africa.