Imagining Post-Genocide Rwanda through Dance

Written in 

Abstract: 

Recovering from the brutal 1994 genocide, the Rwandan government has a strong determination to shape a new contemporary national identity as a unified, de-ethnicized, and globalized nation. While imagining the modernity of the nation, the government also stresses the importance of taking pride in the traditional, indigenous Rwandan identity in order to maintain a sense of cultural confidence. The dancing body, which is defined by Susanne Franco as a “living archive[1]” of memories and cultures, assists to embody this dynamic imagination of contemporary Rwanda. This essay, therefore, attempts to decode how certain elements of dance, including choreography, formation, costumes and performers adhere to the governmental and national ideology in terms of restoring and revitalizing Rwandan identities. These dance elements would be mainly chosen from the two major Rwandan traditional dance troupes, Inganzo Ngari and Intore Dance Troupe to assess the political instrumentalization of dance. The former one is the most successful and largest traditional dance group and the later one was founded in 2004 and made up of 24 dancers.

One of the most important ambitions and imaginations of the new Rwandan identity is overcoming ethnic and social divisions, as well as reconstructing a more united nation. The long existing ethnic divisions have so stubbornly infiltrated the Rwandan society in both pre and post colonial history that even political reforms were insufficient to resolve. During the Belgium colonization period, manipulative Belgium commanders initiated the racial engineering by issuing ethnic identification cards. Anyone with ten or more cattles was considered a member of the aristocratic Tutsi class, while those less wealthy were classified as Hutu members. It was this race theory which was solely based on economic and agricultural contribution that institutionalized the Rwandan ethnic segregation, and officially branded every Rwandan his identity as either Tutsi, Hutu or Twa^[2]. When the Belgians finally left Rwanda in the early 1960s, the politics of racial and ethnic division remained. The most infamous evidence for the remaining ethnic divergence was the 1994 genocide. Hardliners in the Hutu-dominated government labeled all Tutsi as enemies of the state. Hateful vitriol was used against the Tutsi in the press and on radio broadcasts. The problem of ethnic divisions has gone too far out of control—— almost 800,000 people, including mostly the Tutsi ethnic minorities, ordinary citizens, and local officials were brutally murdered during the outbreak of Rwandan genocide—— that the post-genocide Rwanda eventually established a new constituion in 2003 as part of the effort to eliminate any reference to ethnicity^[3]. Following the new constitution was Rwanda’s first-ever legislative presidential election, in which Paul Kagamae became the new president of modern Rwanda. Under his rule, any self-identification to original ethnicities has been considered as a “taboo^[4]” and irrelevant. Nevertheless, political reforms fell short in reconciling the unification among people. In comparison to up-bottom, bottom-up reconstructions would be more effective in revitalizing national unity. This is why dances and dance troupes should be introduced to de-ethnicized the post-genocide Rwanda as they are more grounded to the public.

To start off, the integration and regrouping of multi-ethnic dancers who also come from different backgrounds is the first effort being made by major Rwandan dance troupes in adhering to the governmental ideology of building a united nation. For example, the Inganzo Ngari dance troupe stages all performers from different ethnic groups, origins, professions, age, and gender in order to create a more culturally diverse and united group. No matter if the dancers were Tutsi refugees who originally came from Burundi or Congo, or if they identify themselves more of local Rwandan, dancers are brought together into the same room. Here, their language of communication is the dancing body, where verbal arguments are avoided. Ethnicity does not matter in the dancing world, just as the audience would not give much attention to the origins of dancers when appreciating the performance such as the 2020 Inganzo Ngari staging because every dancer simply has the similar physical appearance. When performed on stage, the message transmitted to the broader public is a unified dancing group symbolizing a unified Rwandan identity.

This impression of a harmonious uniformity is not only left by the integration of multi-ethnic dancers, but more by the contribution of choreography and formations. The artistic creativity underlying the performance further corresponds to the national imagination of a peaceful, united post-genocide Rwanda. Following the previous argument about “the same physical appearance,” it can be seen from the following pictures that little difference could be detected from one dancing body to another. Most importantly, every dancer follows a precise movement at the exact same time, making the perfect synchronization of dancing possible.

(Inganzo Ngari 2020 Mu Buhanga Budasanzwe Ubukwe Babuhinduye Igitaramo, 2020^[5])

For instance, both the male and female dancers are so well-trained and rehearsed that their arms could be positioned at the same altitude to each other as if like copied and pasted onto their bodies. For the female dancers, the angle of their bended bodies also exhibit high similarities to each other. Let alone the smiles on their faces are uniformly delightful. In terms of formation, both male and female corps dancers follow a square matrix structure, which reminds me a lot of the similar formation in Swan Lake corps as seen below.

(Swan Lake Act III Corps de ballet, 2018^[6])

The striking synchronization in the movements, where every leg is raised at the same height and every arm is equally extended, has only one effect, which is to exhibit the ultimate uniformity and harmony. In Swan Lake, the homogenous choreography is to create the solemn and serene ambience for the white swan. In the Rwandan social context, the homogenous choreography is to perform the imagination of a united and harmonious society.

The next imagination of modern Rwanda is a globalized, trendy and open-minded nation, one which develops in time with the world in both the artistic and economic realm^[7].

In realizing this imagination, choreography of the traditional Rwanda dances has undergone alterations and new creations which corresponds to the western urban dance culture. The specific section [11:44-12:00] of the Inganzo Ngari performance exemplifies this trend of blending in more pop culture influenced movements into the traditional steps. For the lower body, the core is situated close to the ground, which is ubiquitous in most African dances. However, the high steps are very different from the usual African stompings in a way that the footsteps performed in the video are a lot more dexterous and agile. For the upper body, the dancer’s swaying arms exhibit some resemblance to the popping and wacking, where arms usually swipe across above and wave around bodies. Therefore, the whole dancing body shows a lot of tendency toward the global, modern dancing trend and styles, symbolizing the effort of taking Rwanda onto a modernized, progressive stage.

While imaging a post-genocide Rwanda identity marked by key words such as “unified,” “progressive,” and “globalized,” Rwanda never forgot about its ancestral history as well as its indigenous culture. As the third part of the Rwandan imagination in addition to unity and modernity, the governmental ideology draws a lot of importance to revitalizing the local cultural identification. It explores the ways traditional dances in keeping cultural heritage alive, and the balance of the old and the new. One of the steps taken by the Inganzo Ngari dance troupe in practicing such blending is through visual effects, especially through performers’ apparels and artefacts.

On these costumes, one can easily detect both the traditional and modern elements. The retaining of those traditional apparel elements is intended to adhere to the government’s ideology of restoring and taking pride in the indigenous Rwandan cultures. The reconfigured design of costumes, which features a lot of the modern and western style elements, on the other hand, presents a literal image of new Rwanda as a more urban, modern and globalized nation. As an example of traditional costumes, dancers of the Intore Dance Troupe would wear traditional weapons such as spears and bows on their body and long flowing white hair pieces as seen in the picture below.

(Rwanda EcoTours: Rwandan Culture, 2019^[8])

These spears were originally for killing wild lives such as cheetahs, lions and tigers during safari. And the white hair pieces were originally made up of lion hairs^[9]. Because of animal rights, neither are the weapons still used to kill nor are the artefacts made up of real animal parts anymore. However, they still remain onstage to symbolize the unforgettable traditional Rwandan, or even African identity as a land rich in wilderness and diversity. The maintenance and preservation of these traditional garments also bear educational purposes for the younger generations. Since dance troupes such as Inganzo Ngari and Intore Dance Troupe are now more prone to hiring people between 20 to 35^[10], especially university students, the opportunity to get dressed in traditional clothes is bestowed on these young children, who would otherwise never have the chance to get in touch with these traditional fashion.

In comparison to this whole body of traditional costumes, the dresses worn by the female dancers at the 2020 Inganzo Ngari performance show off a perfect fusion of the western and the Rwandan fashion style, exemplifying a harmonious coexistence of the old and the new, the local and the western. Imishanana, as shown in the picture below, is a kind of traditional costume for female dancers typically in Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda areas, and usually worn for formal performing occasions such as weddings and church services^[11].

(Inganzo Ngari 2020 Mu Buhanga Budasanzwe Ubukwe Babuhinduye Igitaramo, 2020^[12])

The dress consists of a wrapped skirt bunched at the hips and a lightweight flowing sash draped over one shoulder. The wrap skirt and sash in Tiffany blue in the picture perfectly resemble such description. The one bold step taken forward from the tradition is the gauzy color of the dress, as well as the dazzling sequin top the dancers are wearing. Traditionally, dancers would wear some ordinary vibrant colors such as blue, orange or gold. Different from these rainbow colors, Tiffany blue is definitely more niche and more prone to a newly invented color of the modern time. This new palette draws correspondence to the national effort for modernization. For the top, the use of bright silver color and the metallic fabric further reflect the dance troupe’s effort in following modern pop culture as part of the global fashion trend. These women’s costumes not only show off the “scenic qualities^[13]” of Rwandan dances, but also serve to exhibit Rwanda’s openness to young, new, foreign cultures. Therefore, such reinvented Imishanana, an important visual factor of the performance, embodies a clear post-genocide Rwanda identity: one which still values its own traditional culture and fashion, but also urges to keep up with the contemporary trend.

In conclusion, each composition of the dance performance staged by Rwandan dance troupes exhibits close proximity to the national ideology and contributes to the realisation of an imaginary post-genocide Rwandan identity. The atmosphere of an ethnically united environment is first established within the dance troupes by integrating dancers with multiple ethnic backgrounds. This sense of harmony is further strengthened and embodied by uniformity of dancers’ choreography, symbolizing a unified, de-ethnicized Rwandan identity. On top of that, Rwanda’s desire for a modern, fashionable, progressive identity is embodied by renovating the traditional dance movements with some western modern dance steps. The popping, wacking movements represent Rwanda’s tendency in joining an urban modernized world. Lastly, alterations in costumes with more modern fashion elements embodied the correspondence to the governmental appeal to remembering and revitalizing the indigenous traditional Rwanda cultures while connecting to the world. In all, every detail in dance performances ranging from choreography, formations, dancers, to costumes have successfully been politically instrumentalized to present the dynamic post-genocide Rwandan identity, one which never forgets to root back to its traditional culture while moving forward.

References:

[1] Franco, Susanne. “Reenacting Heritage at Bomas of Kenya: Dancing the Postcolony.” Dance Research Journal 47, no. 2 (2015): 5–21. https://doi.org/10.1017/s01497... speechify-initial-font-size="18px" data-redactor-style-cache="font-size: 18px;" style="font-size: 18px;">[2] Boundless. “The Rwandan Genocide.” Lumen, courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/the-rwandan-genocide/.

[3] Plancke, Carine, “Contemporary Dynamics in Rwandan Dances: Identity, Changing Creativity and the Globalisation of Affect.” Dance Research: The Journal of the Society for Dance Research, vol. 34, no. 2, 2016, pp. 150–169.

[4] Plancke, Carine, Dance performances in post-genocide Rwanda: remaking identity, reconnecting present and past, Journal of Eastern African Studies, 11:2, 330.

[5] Fly Africa Ant. “Inganzo Ngari 2020 MU Buhanga BUDASANZWE Ubukwe Babuhinduye Igitaramo.” YouTube, YouTube, 7 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzXYOi...>[6] Ballet Opera 2. “Swan Lake Act III Corps De Ballet.” YouTube, YouTube, 6 July 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=OME2VG5lM-k&ab_channel=BalletOpera2.

[7] Republic of Rwanda Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Rwanda Vision 2020, Kigali, July 2000.

[8] Eco-Tours, Rwanda. “Rwandan Culture.” Rwandan Culture, 1 Jan. 1970, rwandaecotours.blogspot.com/2013/02/rwandan-culture.html.

[9] Reporter, Times. “The Story behind the Intore Dance.” The New Times | Rwanda, 11 Mar. 2017, www.newtimes.co.rw/section/rea... speechify-initial-font-size="18px" data-redactor-style-cache="font-size: 18px;" style="font-size: 18px;">[10] Plancke, Carine, Dance performances in post-genocide Rwanda: remaking identity, reconnecting present and past, Journal of Eastern African Studies, 11:2, 333.

[11] “Mushanana.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushanana.

[12] Fly Africa Ant. “Inganzo Ngari 2020 MU Buhanga BUDASANZWE Ubukwe Babuhinduye Igitaramo.” YouTube, YouTube, 7 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzXYOi... speechify-initial-font-size="18px" data-redactor-style-cache="font-size: 18px;" style="font-size: 18px;">[13] Plancke, Carine, Dance performances in post-genocide Rwanda: remaking identity, reconnecting present and past, Journal of Eastern African Studies, 11:2, 336.