Dada Masilo – The Sacrifice at The Lowry

The award-winning South African choreographer Dada Masilo is well-known for her acclaimed reinterpretations of big ballet classics like Giselle and Swan Lake. Now she brings the UK premiere of The Sacrifice to The Lowry for two special performances.

Taking influence from Pina Bausch’s seminal work and Igor Stravinsky’s celebrated musical score, this unique dance production uses the rhythm and movement of Tswana, the traditional dance of Botswana, to retell a story of ritual and redemption.

A stunning display of movement and sound.

Performed to original new music played and sung live on stage, The Sacrifice interrogates notions of evil within humanity and the power of community to bring about change. At the heart of this expressive fusion of contemporary and Southern African dance is the heroic struggle of the sacrificial victim, danced by Masilo herself.

An expressive fusion of contemporary and Southern African dance.

The Soweto-born choreographer has garnered much attention for blending different dance forms and refashioning classic stories. Of The Sacrifice, she told us, “I wanted to explore ritual, what sacrifice meant to the Tswana people then and what it means now. Narrative is very important to me. I wanted to create a story that is deeper than a chosen maiden dancing herself to death.”

A fresh transformation of a western ballet classic.

Delivered by an all-South African ensemble, eleven exceptional dancers give a captivating performance to an original score composed by violinist Leroy Mapholo, pianist Nathi Shongwe and opera and gospel choir singer Ann Masina, who also stars as a powerful goddess figure. The musicians are joined by percussionist Mpho Mothiba on stage, and the whole company – dancers and musicians – interact joyfully together throughout the performance.

A stunning display of movement and sound, Dada Masilo’s The Sacrifice is an exhilarating performance and a fresh transformation of a western ballet classic.