“The Trial”: Prisca Ouya ’s Luzimbu Opera Presents Tragedy and Judgement in the Congo
La MaMa E.T.C. is pleased to announce the presentation of a new opera, sung in African languages, Korean and English, by popular director, actor and choreographer Prisca Ouya, o pening June 18-28, 2009 in New York.
Synopsis of Luzimbu: The Trial
A secret abortion has left Lila, a young Congolese woman, sterile. Her new husband, Minimona, is unhappy with their childless relationship and decides to marry a second wife, Biwa , to bear him children. Biwa quickly produces two children, making her the more “successful” wife by community standards. Lila’s jealousy increases, pushing her to invoke the Goddess of Fertility and make a pact that ultimately will have terrible consequences for both women. Meanwhile, Biwa , still young, is not a responsible mother; she is unwilling to give up partying and drinking with her friends every day. She leaves the care of her two children to her co-spouse Lila. Caring for Biwa 's children only makes Lila crave children of her own even more. One day, while bathing the baby at the river, Lila hears the older child screaming as she falls from a tree. Horrified, Lila's instinctive reaction is to rush to help, but by doing so, she leaves the baby in the water. At the foot of the tree, the child dies, and the baby, left behind, drowns. To avoid facing the wrath of her rival, Lila runs away and finds refuge in a society of outcast women. But the day soon arrives when Biwa finds Lila and asks the community for justice. The outcast elder, Mfumu Nzonzi, agrees to a death-penalty trial on the condition that both women, not just Lila, are to be judged.
At its core, Luzimbu exposes women's hopes and fears and lays bare the consequences of judgments based on traditional morals. Do both of the women share responsibility for the childrens’ deaths? Lila was the one on duty when the children died, but Biwa is their real mother and therefore the one ultimately responsible for their well-being. The outcome of the trial, and what follows afterwards, are based on traditional Congolese morality and a complex spiritual value system overlayed by the often tragic and brutal experiences suffered by the women. Who is judged guilty, and by whom?
The Music and Dance of Luzimbu
Luzimbu is an opera sung in two of the languages of the Congo , Lingala and Lari, with narrative song in Korean and English. The spectacular performances choreographed throughout Luzimbu reflect the duality of its director – they are essentially traditional Congolese dance fused and updated with American modern staging.
Just as the dance is a modern take on Congolese tradition, so is the music of Luzimbu – its powerful rhythms draw from both traditional Congolese and modern Western music. In the hands of master drummers, a hollowed-out log is transformed into an ngoma, a powerful and expressive musical voice that lends power and direction to the dance. In the Congo , the ngoma drum is considered a healing force and certain traditional rhythms are associated with particular life events and rituals. In Luzimbu, the drums evoke the power of tradition while adapting new musical elements into the performance.
Humanitarian Action
Violence against women in the Congo has been at a crisis point for far too long. In keeping with the philosophy of Luzimbu and its director, a portion of the proceeds from the performances will be contributed to two international non-profit organizations:
1. Doctors Without Borders. Doctors Without Borders is an international independent medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, natural disasters, or exclusion from health care in nearly 60 countries. MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. Website: www.msf.org.
2. V-Day. Founded by playwright, performer and activist Eve Ensler (The Vagina Monologues), V-Day is a global movement to stop violence against women and girls. V-Day is a catalyst that promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations. Website: www.vday.org.
The director and cast salute these organizations and encourage our audiences to learn about the crisis in the Congo and do whatever they can to end the violence in the beautiful countries of the region.
About Prisca Ouya
Luzimbu is Prisca Ouya 's second show as a director at LaMaMa. Her first show, Mami Wata, opened in December 2005 and was brought back by popular demand in January 2006. She has performed in numerous shows at LaMaMa under the direction of LaMaMa founder Ellen Stewart, and elsewhere. Ms. Ouya teaches master-level Congolese dance workshops in Hawaii , California and New York . Ms. Ouya is a gifted and spectacular dancer; the professional dance magazine Attitude once described her as having “magic hips.” She is able to fuse traditional African dance and modern Western dance with grace, strength and beauty. The result, as seen in Luzimbu, continues to delight audiences with its expression of powerful femininity. In 2008, Le Maintenant, a major Congolese newspaper, said: “Ms. Ouya is the ambassador of Congolese dramatic art in the U.S.”
Ms. Ouya was born and raised in Paris and has lived in the United States for twelve years. The third of four sisters, Ms. Ouya draws much of her inspiration from the female members of her family. She is also strongly influenced by the ongoing tragedies resulting from the violence in both of the Congos ( Republic of Congo and Democratic Republic of Congo). However, Ms. Ouya was drawn to the script of Luzimbu in some measure because of her desire to show the more positive side of Congolese men than recent media coverage of the war has shown. “Although women in the Congo are victims of rape and sexual mutilation by soldiers and guerilla fighters, and I don’t want to lessen our outrage over these atrocities, I also want people to know that there are good and decent men in the Congo , trying to hold their families together and earn a living. They are not all barbarians.”
Show Times and Ticket Information
Thursday - Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2:30 pm. $25 / $20 for students and seniors.
No comments:
Post a Comment