Zoellner Arts Center

Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA 2013-14 Season

Monday Matinée Study Guide

Compagnie Kafig: Correria & Agwa

Monday, January 27, 2014 at 10 a.m. Baker Hall, Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University Welcome to the Monday Matinée at the Zoellner Arts Center

On Monday, January 27, at 10 a.m., your class will attend a Monday Matinée performance of Comanie Käfig: Correria & Aqwa at Lehigh Univeristy’s Zoellner Arts Center Baker Hall.

Companie Käfig - Mourad Merzouki, the troupe’s French director, has said that “käfig” can mean “cage” in both German and Arabic. But his structural cages free his choreographic imagination.

Using this Study Guide You can use this study guide to engage your students and enrich their Zoellner Arts Center field trip. Before attending the performance, we encourage you to:

• Copy the Student Resource Sheet on pages 2&3 for your students to use before the show. • Discuss the information on pages 4&5 About the Performance and Artists. • Read About the Art Form on Page 9, and About Brazil on page 11 with your students. • Engage your class in two or more activities on pages 13-16 • Reflect by asking students the guiding questions. • Immerse students further into the subject matter and art form by using the Resource and Glossary sections on pages 13-17.

At the Performance Your class can actively participate sure the performance by: • Listening to the rhythms and expressive music that accompanies the dancers • Observing how the performer’s movements and gestures enhance the performance • Thinking about how you are experiencing a bit of Brazilian and Hip Hop culture by attending a live performance of samba, hip-hop and capoeira dance • Wondering at the skill of the performers • Reflecting on the sounds, lights, and performance skills you experience at the theatre

We look forward to seeing you at Zoellner’s Monday Matinée. Table of Contents

1 Theatre Etiquette 4

2 Student Resource Sheet 5

3 About the Performance and the Artists 7

4 About the Art Form 9

5 About Brazil 11

6 Learning Activities and Resources 13

7 Glossary

8 PA State Standards and Core Curriculum

About Monday Matinée 1 Theater Etiquette

Be prepared and arrive early. Ideally you should arrive at the Zoellner Arts Center 20-30 minutes before the show. All for travel time and bus unloading or parking, and plan to be in your seats at least 15 minutes before the performance begins.

Be aware and remain quiet. The theater is a “live” space - you can hear the performers easily, but they can also hear you, and you can hear other audience members, too! Even the smallest sounds, like rustling papers and whispering, can be heard throughout the theater, so it’s best to stay quiet so that everyone can enjoy the performance without distractions. The international sign for “Quiet Please” is to silently raise your index finger to your lips.

Show appreciation by applauding. Applause is the best way to show your enthusiasm and appreciation. Performers return their appreciation for your attention by bowing to the audience at the end of the show. It is always appropriate to applaud at the end of a performance, and it is customary to continue clapping until the curtain comes down or the house lights come up.

Participate by responding to the action onstage. Sometime during a performance, you may respond by laughing, crying or sighing. By all means, feel free to do so! Appreciation can be shown in many different ways, depending on the art form. For instance, an audience attending a string quartet performance will sit very still while the audience at a popular music concert may be inspired to participate by clapping and shouting.

Concentrate to help the performers. These artists use concentration to focus their energy while on stage. If the audience is focused while watching the performance, they feel supported and are able to do their best work. They can feel that you are with them!

Please note: Backpacks and lunches are not permitted in the theater.There is absolutely no food or drink permitted in the seating areas. Recording devices of any kind, including cameras, cannot be used during the performances.

Please remember to silence your cell phone and all other mobile devices. 2 Student Resource Sheet

Mourad Merzouki, the troupe’s French director, has said that “käfig” can mean “cage” in both German and Arabic. But his structural cages free his choreographic imagination.

Although visually spectacular, the rambunctiousness of hip-hop dance can make it hard to transfer it from the street or dance club, where it can appear unfettered, to the formality of the stage, where its energy must be contained within bounds. This performance is an internationally successful attempt to theatricalize hip-hop.

Each piece gains artistic shape by being focused on an overriding theme. “Correria” is based on the act of running, which can sometimes look funny and at other times turn emotionally powerful. The stage for “AGWA,” a tribute to water, is filled with hundreds of plastic cups, around which dancers perform increasingly virtuosic steps. 3 About the Performance and the Artists

Viewing Strategy: • Stay focused on your purpose for viewing. • Before you get started, think of what you already know about the Hip Hop movement. Keep this in mind as you watch the performance. • Find out what the different elements of Hip Hop are and what influenced its development. • Compare and contrast the ways in which clothing choices and costumes express culture. • After the performance, sum up what you have learned.

Compagnie Käfig, a French-based troupe of Brazilian dancers. Artistic Director Mourad Merzouki Born in Lyon in 1973, Mourad Merzouki began practicing martial arts and circus arts as early as a seven-year-old. At the age of fifteen, he encountered hip-hop culture for the first time and through it, he discovered dance. He quickly decided to develop this form of street art while also experimenting with other choreographic styles, particularly with Maryse Delente, Jean-François Duroure and Josef Nadj. The wealth of his experiences fed his desire to direct artistic projects, blending hip-hop with other disciplines. In 1989 he, along with a group of dancers, created his first company ‘Accrorap’. In 1994 the company performed Athina during Lyon’s Biennial Dance Festival; it was a triumph that brought street dance to the stage. Merzouki’s travels have led him into unchartered territory, where dance can be a powerful means of communication. In order to develop his own artistic style and sensitivity,

Merzouki established his own company, Käfig, in 1996. In January 2006, Compagnie Käfig began a period of residence at Espace Albert Camus in Bron. The theatre became the venue of the Karavel Festival, created in 2007 under the leadership of Mourad Merzouki. The festival invites some 10 different hip-hop companies and other initiatives to the city. In parallel, Mourad Merzouki spearheaded the inception of a new center for choreographic creation and development: Pôle Pik opened its doors in Bron in 2009. In June 2009, Mourad Merzouki was appointed director of the Centre Chorégraphique National de Créteil et du Val-de-Marne. He continues to develop his projects there, with an accent on openness to the world.

In 17 years, the choreographer has created 21 shows and his company gives on average 150 performances per year around the world. Compagnie Käfig, a French-based troupe of Brazilian dancers.

DANCERS Diego Alves Dos Santos known as Dieguinho Leonardo Alves Moreira known as Leo Cleiton Luiz Caetano De Oliveira Aguinaldo De Oliveira Lopes known as Anjo Cristian Faxola Franco known as Faxola Geovane Fidelis Da Conceição Diego Gonçalves Do Nascimento Leitão known as White Aldair Junior Machado Nogueira known as Al Franciss Wanderlino Martins Neves known as Sorriso Jose Amilton Rodrigues Junior known as Ze Alexsandro Soares Campanha Da Silva known as Pitt 4 About the Art Form Hip Hop

Refers to street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture. It includes a wide range of styles primarily breaking, locking, and popping which were created in the 1970s and made popular by dance crews in the United States. Television and popular film showcased these crews and dance styles in their early stages; therefore, giving hip-hop mainstream exposure. The dance industry responded with a commercial, studio-based version of hip-hop—sometimes called new style—and a hip-hop influenced style of jazz dance called jazz-funk. Classically trained dancers developed these studio styles in order to create choreography from the hip-hop dances that were performed on the street. Because of this development, hip-hop dance is practiced in both dance studios and outdoor spaces.

Europe host several international hip-hop competitions such as the UK B-Boy Championships, Juste Debout, and EuroBattle. Australia host a team-based competition called World Supremacy Battlegrounds and Japan host a two-on-two competition called World Dance Colosseum.

What distinguishes hip-hop from other forms of dance is that it is often freestyle (improvisational) in nature and hip-hop dance crews often engage in freestyle dance competitions—colloquially referred to as battles. Crews, freestyling, and battles are identifiers of this style. Capoeira is a Brazilian art form which combines fight, dance, rhythm and movement. Capoeira is a dialog between players - a conversation through movement which can take on many shades of meaning. The details of capoeira's origins and early history are still a matter of debate among historians, but it is clear that African slaves played a crucial role in the development of the art form. Some historians claim that slaves used capoeira's dance-like appearance as a way to hide their training of combat and self-defense. Capoeira's many styles come out of the context of two principle branches that were formalized in the first half of the twentieth century following capoeira's legalization.

The history of capoeira connects its original, distant origins from African fighting styles. Slaves in the rubber industry in Bolivia with knowledge of these fighting styles eventually formulated a dance where one performer played the slave and the other, the Caporal (master). During this performance, the slave defended himself against the master. Eventually, this dance traveled to Brazil via African slaves, where it was refined and became known as Capoeira.

In Brazil, it has been described as a warrior's dance for those that escaped their masters, as well as a dance that readied slaves for fighting their masters in a rebellion. The dance part of it allowed the true nature of the moves to be hidden from their masters. Unfortunately, during the mid to late 1800's, those seen practicing Capoeira were often detained, as it was considered a criminal practice. Still, Capoeira did not die and continued to be practiced, particularly by the poor.

Samba, an old Brazilian style of dance with many variations, is African in origin. It has been performed as a street dance at carnival, the pre-Lenten celebration, for almost 100 years. Many versions of the Samba (from Baion to Marcha) are danced at the local carnival in Rio. The ballroom Samba or Carioca Samba is derived from the rural "Rocking Samba" and has been known for many years. (The Carioca is a small river that runs through Rio de Janiero - hence the name Carioca refers to the people of Rio.) Today Samba is still very popular in Rio. During carnival time there are "schools of Samba" involving thousands of elaborately-costumed dancers presenting a national theme based on music typical of Brazil and Rio in particular.

Before 1914 it was known under a Brazilian name "Maxixe". As early as 1923 an international meeting of professors of dancing took note of the rise of the Samba's popularity, particularly in France. A French dance book published by Paul Boucher in 1928 included Samba instructions. The dance was introduced to United States movie audiences in 1933 when Fred Astaire and Dolores Del Rio danced the Carioca in Flying Down to Rio and several years later, Carmen Miranda danced the Samba in That Night in Rio. A Samba exhibition was given at the November 1938 meeting of the New York Society of Teachers of Dancing. General interest in the Samba was stimulated at the 1939 World's Fair in New York, where Samba music was played at the Brazilian Pavilion. A few years later the Brazilian composer Ary Barroso wrote the classic Samba, "Brasil," which quickly became a hit, and in 1944 he went to Hollywood to write the score for the musical Brazil.

Samba has a very specific rhythm, highlighted to its best by characteristic Brazilian musical instruments: originally called tamborim, chocalho, reco-reco and cabaca. Much of Samba music came from daily life in Rio. To achieve the true character of the Samba a dancer must give it a happy, flirtatious and exuberant interpretation. Principal characteristics of the Samba are the rapid steps taken on a quarter of a beat and the pronounced rocking motion and sway of the dancing couple.

Bossa Nova is a Brazilian dance that followed the creation of Bossa Nova music in the late 1950s. It is roughly translated as meaning 'new wave', 'new way' or 'new beat'. As popular as the music may be, the dance is not widely taught in dance schools. As a result, dancers are puzzled by what dance styles they should use when they hear Bossa Nova music, and sometimes use Rumba, Samba, Merengue and even Night Club Two Step patterns. This can work except that the distinct Latin Jazz feel of the music calls for its own style.

The advantage of knowing basic Bossa Nova steps is that once dancers know how to dance the basic steps to the mood of the music, they can then incorporate moves from other dances that fit Bossa Nova's mood and rhythm. 4 About the Pieces

Every artist hopes to find that perfect muse to inspire their work. Compagnie Käfig founder and choreographer Mourad Merzouki was lucky enough to find 11 of them all at the same time. Merzouki met a group of scrappy young men from Rio de Janeiro at the Lyon Dance Biennial in 2006, and they immediately struck a chord with him. “These young dancers, mostly from Rio’s favelas, were dancing to express themselves, to exist, to survive,” Merzouki says. “The rhythm and the passion is really present within them. It really fascinated me and I decided to create the piece Agwa for them.”

Agwa, which means water in Portugese, was soon followed by Correria, which means running. “I try to tell stories on universal themes, and topics that mean a lot to people in every country,” Merzouki says. “For Correria/Agwa, I wanted to work on a project which was not only linked to what we already know about Brazil, the favelas, etc. Water and running were very interesting to me because they concern dancers and also the rest of the world. In today’s society, we need to run, and water is a vital element. But I don’t necessarily want to deliver a particular message through all my creations.”

CORRERIA 30 minutes Correria (running) plunges us into a frantic, hectic race just like the one that governs our daily lives. Bodies, movement and a show that takes your breath away!

AGWA 30 minutes Agwa (water) is all about water, at once a vital component of our bodies, a precious - vital, even – natural resource to be economized and preserved, and a symbol of renewal. 5 About Brazil

• Other major cities include Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Fortaleza. • In Brazil they drive on the right-hand side of the road. • Brazil has a large coastline on the eastern side of South America, stretching 7491 kilometres (4655 miles) in length. • Brazil shares a border with all South American countries except for Chile and Ecuador. • Brazil covers 3 time zones. • Brazil has one of the largest economies in the world. • Brazil is one of the 77 founding members of the United Nations. • The Amazon River flows through Brazil, it is the • Brazil is the largest country in South 2nd longest river in the world (after the Nile). America. • Around 60% of the Amazon Rainforest is located • The name Brazil comes from a tree named in Brazil. brazilwood. • The climate in the majority of Brazil is tropical. • It is called Brasil in Portuguese, the official • Brazil is home to a wide range of animals, language spoken in Brazil. including armadillo, tapirs, jaguars and pumas. • Brazil is the only country in South America • Human activities such as logging, mining fishing that speaks Portuguese. and agriculture are important to the Brazilian • Portugal claimed the land of Brazil in the economy but are also a serious threat to Brazil's year 1500. Independence was declared in diverse environment. 1822. • Millions of tourists visit Brazil every year. • Brazil is the 5th largest country in the world • There are around 2500 airports in Brazil. by both land area and population. • Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in • The population in 2012 was around 194 Brazil with the national team consistently among million people. the best in the world, winning the World Cup a • The capital city is Brasilia, while the largest record 5 times. city is Sao Paulo. • In 2016, Rio will host both the World Cup Soccer Championships and the Olympic Games. 6 Additional Resources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STsfpTQ-JMA&feature=c4- overview&list=UUF46pbg7cGBTrnNjWCCEKrg Interview with two companie Kafig dancers by Philip Szporer, Scholar in Residence at the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (published June 30, 2013) (9:37 length)

Agwa - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fTtPrrKEPo (1:55 length)

Program notes: 2013 International Festival of Art & Ideas - http://artidea.org/sites/default/files/ downloads/compagniekafig.pdf

More about Capoeira http://www.bnbcomp.net/capoeira/histcap.htm http://www.capoeiranyc.com/study.html

More about Samba http://sambadance.com/ http://www.dancelovers.com/samba_history.html

More about Bossa Nova http://www.heritageinstitute.com/danceinfo/descriptions/bossa_nova.htm

More about Brazil http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/brazil-guide/ http://www.mapsofworld.com/brazil/information/fact.html 7 Glossary

Artistic director: A person who has artistic control of a company’s work. They will often choose a company’s season and direct several works.

Bossa Nova: a well-known style of Brazilian music developed and popularized in the 1950s and 1960s. The phrase bossa nova means literally "new trend" in Portuguese.

Capoeira: a Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics and music, and is sometimes referred to as a game.

Choreographer: A person who composes dance works.

Dynamics: Variation and gradation in the intensity of a movement or musical sound.

Ensemble: The united performance of an entire group.

Folk Dance: A style of dance that originates among the common people of a particular nation or region.

Movement Vocabulary: Dance movements that commonly appear in a choreographer’s works.

Repertoire/Repertory: The list of works that a company is prepared to perform.

Samba: a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating inBrazil, and with its roots in Rio de Janeiro and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival. Considered one of the most popular Brazilian cultural expressions, samba has become an icon of Brazilian national identity.

Solo: Any performance by one person.

Symmetry: An exact matching of form and arrangement of parts on opposite sides of a central point or axis.

Work: A word that dancers use to refer to a dance; other words that are used in this manner are “piece.” 8 PA Academic Standards and Core Curriculum

Academic Standards for the Arts and Humanities

Historical and Cultural Contexts A. Explain the historical, cultural and social context of an individual work in the arts. B. Relate works in the arts chronologically to historical events (e.g., 10,000 B.C. to present). C. Relate works in the arts to varying styles and genre and to the periods in which they were created (e.g., Bronze Age, Ming Dynasty, Renaissance, Classical, Modern, Post-Modern, Contemporary, Futuristic, others). D. Analyze a work of art from its historical and cultural perspective. E. Analyze how historical events and culture impact forms, techniques and purposes of works in the arts (e.g., Gilbert and Sullivan operettas) F. Know and apply appropriate vocabulary used between social studies and the arts and humanities. G. Relate works in the arts to geographic regions: • Africa • Asia • Australia • Central America • Europe • North America • South America H. Identify, describe and analyze the work of Pennsylvania Artists in dance, music, theatre and visual arts. I. Identify, explain and analyze philosophical beliefs as they relate to works in the arts (e.g., classical architecture, rock music, Native American dance, contemporary American musical theatre) J. Identify, explain and analyze historical and cultural differences as they relate to works in the arts (e.g., PLAYS BY Shakespeare, works by Michelangelo, ethnic dance and music). K. Identify, explain and analyze traditions as they relate to works in the arts (e.g., story telling – plays, oral histories- poetry, work songs- blue grass). L. Identify, explain and analyze common themes, forms and techniques from works in the arts (e.g., Copland and Graham’s Appalachian Spring and Millet’s The Gleaners).

Pennsylvania’s public schools shall teach, challenge and support every student to realize his or her maximum potential and to acquire the knowledge and skills needed to identify, compare, contrast and analyze works in the arts in their historical and cultural context appropriate for each grade level in concert with districts’ social studies, literature and language standards.

PA COMMON CORE STANDARDS Suggested activities and Resources presented in this Study Guide support Pennsylvania Common Core Standards in Reading for History and Social Studies (GRADES 6 - 12)

About Monday Matinée

This Monday Matinée Study Guide was compiled, written, edited, and (especially) designed with material adapted by study guides offered by the Cal Performances of the University of California, Berkeley. Other models of excellent study guides for material and presentation that inspired this document: the University Musical Society, and all websites listed in “Additional Resources” section.

Other material gathered from the PA Dept. of Education Standards Aligned Systems website, and listed website and reading sources cited on p. 15.