Afrovibes in De Balie
4 and 5 October
On October 4 and 5, the Afrovibes Festival takes place at De Balie. This year’s theme is Legacy. Join us for compelling performances and in-depth talks.
Afrovibes Festival presents performances featuring dance, theatre, and music by contemporary African dance and theatre makers. These are artists who, from an African perspective, give artistic form to current questions and themes that also resonate with us, offering a distinctive vision on them. Themes about who we are, who we want to be, and how we are connected to one another. Afrovibes stands out as a festival that brings together artists from Africa and the African diaspora in the Netherlands.
Performances and talks:
Who decides where cultural objects belong? And what happens when the stories behind them are erased or ignored? Across many African countries, the impact of colonialism is still deeply felt — but often overlooked. Calls for restitution and reparation are growing louder, yet many former colonial powers continue to hold on to looted cultural treasures.
The largest uncut diamond on earth shined in the crown worn by King Charles at his coronation in 2023. But behind this magnificent stone, lies a less brilliant history. For instance, the Cullinan was born and excavated in South Africa in 1905. Yet it was cut in Amsterdam and traded under pressure to the English
Inspired by the powerful Afrovibes performance I AM, this panel explores the legacies of queerness within African diasporic communities in the Netherlands. For many people living between cultures, finding a sense of home and belonging can already be challenging. But for LGBTQ+ individuals, that search often comes with added layers of difficulty. Queer people of
In this powerful theater- en dance performance, Tandile Mbatsha (x) takes us back to their childhood. As children in rural South Africa, they had to search for their identity and how to belong. Tandile Mbatsha stages both the theme of legacy and belonging by involving their biological father and mother in the performance. In one
