There are some truly jaw dropping ‘how do they do that’ moments.
Need a reason to step out on a cold rainy night? Well, Mother Africa is a compelling one. On entering the Peacock Theatre, I was transported to a bustling vibrant African market that quickly uplifted my spirit and made me smile in response to the skill and ingenuity on the stage.
Mother Africa is the brain child of Winston Ruddle a Zimbabwean who quit school and started performing as a breakdancer and later as a clown, rolla rolla artist and tightrope artist, he took his knowledge and skill and went on to open the Hakuna-Matata Circus School in Tanzania. Working with producer Hubert Schober, Ruddle has been able to bring his dream of an African Circus to life.
Do yourself a favour and treat yourself to a trip to Africa via the Peacock Theatre.
I wasn’t sure what to expect and I must admit I did find the name Mother Africa uninspiring as it has, unfortunately, become quite commonly used for all manner of events and activities, however there are some truly jaw dropping ‘how do they do that’ moments. A favourite moment of mine was the Kora player with a dancer who was expressive, strong and captivating to watch.
The name of the circus is to reflect the range of countries the performers come from including Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. This brought an energy and flavour as well as a sense of cohesion and familiarity to the production as the market place being used as the tool to showcase the acts could have been taken from almost any African country as it is a very familiar scene.
I am very pleased that I left my home on a dark, gloomy, cold February London night as for a couple of hours I was basking in the sun, energy and vibrancy of Mother Africa – do yourself a favour and treat yourself to a trip to Africa via the Peacock Theatre.
