Corpus Criolla

Various cultural influences play a role in Faizah Grootens' sensitive contemporary choreographies. In her dazzling Corpus Criolla (the title means as much as 'Creolised body language'), she focuses on the expression and meaning of various Curaçao dance forms. One is the incomparably rousing tambú beak dance to 'muzik di zumbi' – spiritual music, referring to its African origin. Another is the Caribbean waltz, which with its three-quarter beat has a very distinctive look.

In the work, vulnerability, temperament and the characteristic Latin-Caribbean flow come together in the movements of five dancers, characterised by endless, flowing circular movements. A central role is played by polyrhythms, multiple rhythms used simultaneously, to embody the essence of Curaçao dance traditions. In doing so, Grootens not only focuses on the beauty and diversity of these traditions, but also distances herself from the stereotypical embodiment often associated with them.

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In the beautifully designed Corpus Criolla, where the corn kernels with which the dance floor is littered crackle and creak underfoot, topical issues such as stereotyping, identity, colonial history and social idealism are highlighted in a clear and impressive way.

Faizah Grootens won the Leo Spreksel Award, an incentive prize for up-and-coming choreography talent, in 2023. The jury was full of praise: "Faizah choreographs with the body as a great source of inspiration, proceeding like a sculptor. [...] This sculptural clarity never becomes predictable, however, as her intuition and her Caribbean roots are the source of the characteristic flow in her work.”