Part of the cast of Levite John the Baptist edition. PHOTO/courtesy
Dance theatre has been getting its space on stage over the years. From Dance Chior Mu Kirombe, The Gathering, Tabu Flo’s Kalabanda, and Lillian Nabaggala’s Nambi, among others, high quality dance theatre has been taking its rightful place.
It is rare, however, that these shows are spiritual, in fact, the last time an inspirational dance performance was organised at the National Theatre was The Gathering, by Clay Dance Company at the National Theatre in 2019.
Levites, the show opening at the National Theatre this evening, is such a big moment not only for Uganda’s dance scene but even the gospel dance scene in general.
Titled The Levites: John the Baptist Edition, this show comes from the ongoing dance series The Levites. The show is a collaboration between The Throne Dance Company and Clay Dance Company that celebrates the Levites, one legend at a time.
At the moment, they will be telling John the Baptist’s story, especially his prophecy, trials, and tribulations; however, the focus will be on the fact that John was a Levite, who chose ministry over his own status.
The Levites were given the responsibility of the priesthood because of their zeal in defending God’s honour. Whereas God originally consecrated the firstborn sons of the Israelites (Exodus 13:11-15), He later chose the tribe of Levi to take that place in His service.
If the rehearsal is anything to go by, the show will have a mix of dance routines, fusing hip hop and contemporary. In fact, the first part of the show is a mix of the two while the rest is strictly contemporary.
Much as Christian dance shows are not a common place at the National Theatre, churches have been a big source of dancers in Uganda. With competitions such as Dance Heaven, which was organised by Miracle Centre, they used to have some of the best dancers in the country. Both Christian crews and secular ones.
Josh Jasper, one of the producers and directors for the show, started out his dance journey as a performer. He was one of the dancers during The Gathering in 2019.
He says since this dance responds to a Christian audience, they decided to audition from the different church crews.
“We wanted to work with a group of dancers who already connect with the concept and the message we are trying to put across,” he says.
Jasper is the founder of Throne Choreography, and for this particular show, he partnered with Clay Dance Company to put it together, but he has also sought the guidance of theatre makers such as Dela Kalanzi and Karen Hasahya of Timeless Arts.
“I worked with the team when they staged The Phantom of the Opera, so they are helping out with guidance,” he says.
Levite: John the Baptist Edition premieres today at the National Theatre with two shows and another pair of shows tomorrow.
