Blackmilk is the first part of a triology titled “trompoppies” created by Tiran Willemse. Trompoppies is Afrikaans and describes drum majorettes performing a formation dance in uniform. The performance examines one of the choreographic elements of these dances:  the precise hand gestures. 

By weaving the trompoppies disciplined movements with the melodramatic flourishes of white femme starlets and the dynamic gestures of black masculine rap icons, the performance navigates the chasm between portrayals of African and Afro-American male-presenting bodies. blackmilk challenges this narrow spectrum of representation through performativity. 

Willemse probes the myriad affective bodies residing in the grey zones of legible identities, revealing a nuanced sensibility they term “black male melancholy.” In this charged performance, the artist, a virtuoso with a haunting, possessed gaze, subverts conventions and directs the spectator’s attention to the margins.” 

Tiran Willemse is an artist, born in South-Africa and situated between Zürich and Berlin. His performance-based practise explores the body inside an unimaginable environment. Using physical depth to create sonic images that deal with the construction of systems, creating experiences that communicate somatic and psychological landscapes beyond the human condition. He has worked and collaborated with Eszter Salamon, Jerome bel, Trajal Harrell, Meg Stuart, Ligia Lewis, Andros Zins-Browne, Dorota Gaweda & Eglé Kulbokaite, Price (Mattias Ringgenberg) and with Cullberg ballet under Deborah Hay and Jeftha Van Dinther.

Time: 11 pm
Meetingpoint: Palais Carli, Main Courtyard, Marseille, France