Impact
on performers and audiences

Our work has impact on both individual and civil society levels.

PARTICIPATING DANCE ARTISTS:

Together we discover bottlenecks in society, and find ways to communicate them through dance and theater.
By expressing their own vision of social problems, the dancers develop into ambassadors and advocates of the issue. Themes get under their skin and become part of the consciousness they carry out to others.
Acquire life skills: dancers develop in the areas of personal growth, professionalization and leadership.

AUDIENCE:

Is immersed in an impressive experience that stimulates feelings and thoughts. The audience looks into the mirror of their own society through the stage.
Encounters new perspectives on a problem and is invited to share experiences and discuss topics.
Domino effect: Part of the audience will internalize the message and tell about it to others, and in this way affecting much more people.

POWER WOMEN IN BENIN

During a project in Benin, the female dancers were often tired before we even started. They were not allowed to participate by their families until they had completed all household chores for the day. They behaved shy and submissive at first and were unaccustomed to the French language. Speaking little was a stark contrast to the enthusiasm with which they then set to work with their bodies. Three months later, these women were speaking to the press in French and two of them started successful businesses. During the training, they discovered they could be of great value outside of family life. Dance had given them self-esteem and confidence.

TOUR IN THE BURUNDIAN HILLS

In Burundi, the performance Les Larmes de Crocodile was seen (live and via TV) by an estimated half of the Burundian population. This performance about gender, menstruation and rape but also about land distribution and reconciliation touched a nerve with the audience. During a nationwide tour of all provinces, discussions arose about the portrayal of strong women in the performance and after the show, there were long lines behind the microphone with people wanting to share their stories about injustice and taboos they recognized. Sometimes perpetrators of sexual abuse were even called to account on the spot.

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Docu Les larmes de Crocodile

LAUGHING AT RAPE

Unfortunately, performances featuring a simulated rape scene regularly elicited responses of laughter or even encouragement from the audience. This presented the team with the challenge of getting the audience to reflect on their reaction. So in the performance Touch my body, don’t Touch my body, we added a scene where a young woman who was thrown into the corner suddenly grabbed a microphone and “shut down” the performance to confront the loudest laughers on the spot about their behavior. She then turned her back on them and started a rap about strong women.

Testimonials

Director Compagnie Walô en Benin, AGBOSSOU Rachelle:

“Grand Cru Global and its trainers form a team of coaches who are experts in their fields. We at Compagnie Walô are very honoured to work with such a team.”

Head of Training culture troupe El Funoun, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Noora Baker:

“Working with Feri and Noortje has influenced me as it has influenced them. Learning from them a different process of creating a piece especially in such a short period of time with people you don’t know. Incorporating the use of words and songs into the production, which for me was the first time, and experimenting with traditional dance ‘Dabke’ in a new way. As a Palestinian I have always been called ‘courageous’ even at times when I don’t think I deserved it, however after working with Feri and Noortje I would have to give them this title for their openness with us and for working with us instead of working above us.”

Dancer from the production Les larmes de Crocodile in Burundi, Carel Hatunga:

“It’s very rare for an artist to see their message being received exactly as they had conceived it. But what touched me, in all the provinces we’ve been to, is that even those parts (of the performance) where we were conveying a lot of knowledge, we realized that the unexperienced audience understood exactly the message we wanted to tell.”