Athena Mazarakis takes an emotional journey (Photo: John Hogg)

RELATED LINKS: Dance Umbrella – 18 years old and still going strong THIS year the FNB Dance Umbrella celebrates its 18th birthday with a Gala Evening looking back at its most popular performances. Read more Emotion rules at Dance Umbrella THE FNB Dance Umbrella features works by choreographers who have dug deep into their own experiences to bring the audience emotionally charged performances. Read more Dance Umbrella showcases South Africa's many diverse cultures FROM Shembe to classical, by way of Khoi, pantsula and modern dance, the 2005 FNB Dance Umbrella again promises to be a highlight of Joburg's cultural calendar. This year 14 new works have been commissioned from local and international choreographers. Raed more What's on YOUR first-stop guide to city events, our interactive calendar ranges wide, from concerts to lectures to DIY shows. Read more A week in Joburg WHERE to start? Don't miss the Just So … dance at the Market Theatre, but there's also tons of other great stuff: an African night with Picasso, outdoor events, several seminars, the zoo revamp, 60 violinists at the flea market, rock art talk, military lectures and a world-class organist. Read more

Dance Umbrella wows audience Four pieces set the stage alight at the FNB Dance Umbrella, with stirring performances from a variety of dancers. March 10, 2006 By Tammy O'Reilly "BLOEMFONTEIN, Durban, Athens, Kimberly, Johannesburg," says the dancer, tracing her finger up her arms, over her head, across her torso and down the backs of her legs to her feet. As she repeats the sequence for the next few minutes, upping the pace of her movements and the emotion with which she pronounces those place names, you soon catch on that her body is a virtual map, her fluctuating tones an expression of her feelings on each leg of her emotional journey. That was Athena Mazarakis's performance in Coming To on day 12 of the FNB Dance Umbrella at the Dance Factory in Newtown, and the rapturous applause from the full house confirms the audience's liking of the piece. Athena Mazarakis in Coming To at the FNB Dance Umbrella in Newtown (Photo: John Hogg) The three other performances of the evening, Landscape of Pain, Breaking the Surface and Crush, get the same delighted response from the crowd. In Breaking the Surface it had something to do with their appreciation for the choreographer's ability to combine successfully dance with other art forms, such as music, animation and text. The piece explored the identity and place of women in society and the restrictions that religion and culture place on them. Dressed in sombre browns and muted shades of orange, dancers from the Vuyani Dance Theatre and Tshwane Dance Theatre put on a stirring performance about physical and emotional pain, and the ripple effect it can have on those around you. The FNB Dance Umbrella 2006 opened on 24 February and runs until 18 March. This platform for new works from both local and international choreographers is being presented at various venues, including the Wits Theatre Complex, on Jorissen Street, in Braamfontein; The Dance Factory, in the Newtown precinct; and the new Johannesburg University Arts Centre, in Auckland Park. Tickets for the FNB Dance Umbrella are available at the venues' doors or can be booked at Computicket. Prices range from R40 to R60. For further information contact 011 482 4140 or e-mail danceumbrella@artslink.co.za. Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za