"Yama's Caravane of the Francophone Rythm"

Five European dancers led by Yama Queen of Sabar will start their journey from Dakar November 15, 2014 to join three musicians and two Senegalese dancers and three musicians for a cultural and artistic exchange trip to Mali and Burkina Faso. Once in Bamako, home of African rhythm, we will meet many artists and we will ship in the Caravan a percussionist and a dancer to hit the road to Bobo Dioulasso in Burkina Faso. Following the passage in Bobo Dioulasso, unmistakable African cultural capital of the West, where we still ship two other artists among all those found to hit the road back to Dakar. A few days of rehearsals and the group consolidated during this adventure will present at the XV Summit of the Francophonie its unique creation and its message of peace!

Thank you very much for supporting us! Your gift will help us to film this intercultural exchange in the heart of rythm and human unity!

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The project CARAVAN broadly explained:

Here is the project told by Yama, Queen of Sabar, the person who conceives it. A major figure with respect to the transmission of Senegalese culture in Europe for the past 20 years and whose vocation and work is : Awaking the Sabar that lie within all of us. Drawing on her deep knowledge of Sabar, traditional dance from Senegal, Yama is convinced of the power of transformation that the practice of dance can bring upon us at all levels of our being. Awaking the Sabar according to Yama means seeking in the deepest level, our life drive, our inner rhythm, our life force!

"During my work with dancers and musicians from other countries in West Africa, I realized that we were using the same rhythms, known by different names.

At the same time, each nation has its own way of interpreting these rhythms that are part of a rich and diverse cultural heritage.

Rhythm is the common language through which African and Western artists meet through dialogue, a unique creative relationship of a kind.

This realization gave me the idea that we should stimulate an intense cultural and artistic exchange to find then start from our common roots while creating something new.

To give substance to the idea what better way than to travel with a group of Western and African dancers and musicians through French speaking African countries in West Africa to find its cultures, its rhythms and dances?

I immediately imagined a CARAVAN symbol of nomadism and sharing to travel the roads of West Africa and be closer to the people. Following this route, an original performative artistic work would be born from the very substance of this rich journey. "

In 2002 Yama created the Association VISION PLURIELLE, small group of passionate people for management of the project CARAVAN among others. We have always aimed at promoting first the exchanges North/South and enhancing the African cultural heritage, especially with dozens of dance workshops that we organized each year in Senegal with students from around the world. Moreover the association wants to be an actor in the field of training and professional insertion of young artists. That is why we are working on building a multidisciplinary centre to offer young artists the basis of pedagogy, cultural history, communication, etc. to help them building their future as pedagogists and artists.

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For this pilot project, we selected five European dancers who wished to participate in this adventure through Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso. We then leave for Dakar, city of departure and arrival of the CARAVAN which will tour for two weeks. During the trip we will exchange of course, but also audition and embark with us dancers and musicians in each country visited and finally, we will be back in the Senegalese capital for a few days dedicated to creating a work that will reflect this unique intercultural journey. The Creation will be presented at the XV International Francophonie Summit of November 28 to 30, 2014 in Dakar.

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The artistic concept is to create a musical phrase that introduces a message of peace (song and dance) from Dakar to the other two countries, highlighting the richness of communication and interpretation in order to emphazise the similarities and differences between cultures. All human and artistic exchanges will be done through French our common ground! This is why the project has the support of the International Organization of la Francophonie, which saw the CARAVAN symbol of the creative force of a language that is vector of mutual knowledge.

The narrative, the "common thread" of this human adventure can count on the special contribution of Sheikh Seck, internationally renowned actor and producer who will give his ironic and brilliant touch to the story.

Watch this beautiful animation movie on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbgBQ6p-it4&feature=youtu.be

to grasp the meaning of a "musical phrase" and get to know la Reine de Sabar:

The project "CARAVAN" will also be an opportunity to make our contribution to local communities encountered in our passage.

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LA CARAVANE de YAMA