Jeremy Nedd & Impilo Mapantsula

From the spiritual jazz of Alice Coltrane and Bheki Mseleku to pantsula, the South African dance that gave an entire generation a voice during apartheid. With "blue nile to the galaxy around olodumare," choreographer and dancer Jeremy Nedd explores the Black diaspora and immerses us in a cosmic, Afrofuturistic experience.

Collaborating with the dance collective Impilo Mapantsula, Nedd bridges jazz as an expression of African American self-determination with pantsula, a powerful movement language known for its virtuoso footwork. Improvisation is central to both the music and the dance.

The performance draws inspiration from cosmic phenomena: from the birth of a galaxy to the death of a star. By connecting the energetic and lyrical jive style of pantsula with echoes of past protests against oppression, the performers reflect on the compression of space and time, and our illusions of progress toward the future.