Ulduz Ahmadzadeh: Transmission, translation, inspiration: navigating ZĀĀR

Sat 06.04., 16.30h

In her piece for the TQW dance group PARASOL, choreographer Ulduz Ahmadzadeh continues her long-term exploration of pre-national dance heritage from South-West Asia, delving into the cosmology of the transcontinental healing ritual Zaar (or Zaar Cult). In the Iranian context, this ritual is mainly practised by a Black minority and women while being prohibited by the government. The creation is inspired by the beliefs, movement qualities and myths of the ritual and navigates the translation of this inspiration into a theatrical, artistically coded space. It processes the transmission of cultural practices from a minoritised community, partly stemming from slave trade, to Europe-based dancers of different backgrounds and the recontextualisation of movements, sounds and collective physical experiences in a migratory context. In this session, the team invites the audience to a collective reading and discussion around these themes.

Moderation: Anna Leon (TQW Theory)