The last week of the year has lots of shows to entertain. Here are just a few out of the box performances that will make sure 2017 is a cultural year we will remember.
Starting off on Boxing Day, the band Naughty Claudia will perform at Sarah’s Jazz Club in Nicosia at 9.30pm. The band, who take pop, rock, blues and reggae songs and rearrange them in their own unique way, are Katiana Zachariou (vocals), George Solonos (acoustic guitar), Nektarios Cassar (double bass) and Constantinos Pavlides (drums and percussions).
Moving onto December 27, and staying in Nicosia, the movement performance entitled Vivid Blue will be moving us at Garage until December 29. The 45-minute performance, by Christina Ioannou, is a process of understanding eternity in human life. The performance is built on rational methodology, a focused visual approach and research.
Vivid Blue is a mixture of drama and dance – by Aneesha Mihail – and the performance strips dance right down to its very core to free it of unnecessary elements that weigh it down. Due to the nature of the performance, each show can only accommodate 35 audience members each night.
Keeping to the theme of dance and performance, the non-profit performance company MITRA will present the performance Voices at Hamamomerye in Nicosia on Thursday and Friday.
Voices explores music and dance as a form of meditation and self-realisation. The project draws on references from the historical tradition of hamam as a symbol of physical and mental cleansing. The concept and research for the performance is by Marina Pogiatzi and the choreography and dance are by Mikaela Papachrisanthou. Vocals will be provided by Christina Polycarpou, while George Savva will play the lyre.
MITRA embraces artists from the fields of dance, theatre, music and visual arts, with a strong focal point on the human body. The group’s name is inspired by the Greek word matrix, which states the place, the focus of the creation of a new life. Metaphorically, MITRA is the place to create artistic work.
Turning to Limassol and a dance performance, Addio Addio Amore – a Piece for Pina, will be performed at the Rialto Theatre on Thursday at 8.30pm. Dancer Daphnis Kokkinos will take us on an expressive, reflective journey through Japan, India, Greece, France, South America and most importantly, life.
He will use his body to reveal stories, talk about experiences and anecdotes that he shared with the late German performer Pina Bausch. In his homage to Bausch, Kokkinos draws on his worldliness to stimulate the audience with situations of humanity in his continuing exploration of human vicissitudes.
Kokkinos has spent the last 25 years dancing, collaborating and most recently fulfilling the role of rehearsal assistant for Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch. This is the first time Daphnis has stepped out from the company to present his own work.
Naught Claudia
Live performance by the band. December 26. Sarah’s Jazz Club, Xanthis Xenierou 35, Nicosia. 8.30pm. €10. Tel: 95-147711
Vivid Blue
A movement performance. December 27-28. Garage, Ammohostou 16, Nicosia. 9.30pm. Tel: 99-457170
Voice
A dance and music performance. December 28-29. Hamamomerye, Tyllirias Square, Nicosia. 9pm. €10. Tel: 99-027399
Addio Addio Amore
Dance performance by Daphnis Kokkinos. December 28. Rialto Theatre, Limassol. 8.30pm. €8/10. Tel: 77-777745
