NAIROBACH

Combining African joie de vivre with the musical spirituality of Johann Sebastian Bach [...] and then transferring it all into the architectural austerity of Heidelberg's Hebelhalle— is that possible? It is, and it works remarkably well. [...] These 60 thrilling and very diverse minutes made clear: the african-european dialogue doesn't need many words, the common language of dance and music alone can be inspiring and uniting. The audience in the completely sold out Hebelhalle was swept away.

Nairobach is not only a demonstration of dance as a universal cultural language but also an exploration of the conditions for coexistence between six dancers from Nairobi and five from three other continents. [...] In the end, a series of pas de deux illustrates how encounters can take shape in which the dancers do not have to relinquish their sense of otherness but can instead incorporate it—images that were met with standing ovations from the audience.