Based on her research on intervening diasporean choreographic perspectives (B02), dance and theater scholar Dr. Mariama Diagne has co-launched the Sabar, Polyrhythm, and the Politics of Body Movement workshop on traditional Senegalese dance together with Marie Hélène Pereira, senior curator at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW). From June to September 2024, interested parties can be introduced to the sound language of Sabar in talks and gatherings. In addition, dance workshops invite people to experience the collective movement to the rhythm of the drums for themselves and to revive the ceremonial practice of Sabar.

 Mariama Diagne's performative research project is based on her own ancestry from the Lébou community. Dating back to the Senegalese groups of the Lébou, Wolof and Sérère, Sabar is considered a cornerstone of African oral history. As a practice of liberating the body while at the same time belonging to a collective, the research subject of Sabar also represents a specifically intervening art and cultural form.

 By interweaving their Senegalese networks, Marie Hélène Pereira and Mariama Diagne brought together the most important players in Senegalese dance for the series of events in order to link tradition, technique and research. They invited Berlin based griot, singer, dancer and drummer Nago Guèye Koité and his longtime collective Saf Sap to host famous participants, like the award-winning dancer Germaine Acogny, scholars like Aïssatou Bangoura-Sow, Ibou Coulibaly Diop and Ibrahima Wane, as well as drummers like Bouyo Ndiaye Rose.

The result is a diverse program on polyrhythms and scholarly questions about the politics of body movements in the Sabar. The events will be held in French with German translation. The workshops are in German spoken language and include the possibility of language assistance for French and Wolof or English. All information on the individual events and registration options can be found on the website of the Haus der Kulturen der Welt.