OM(DANSA) PISH-PO / RE(DANCE) PISH-PO

Pish-Po is a dance on the verge of being forgotten entirely. It has ancient roots and has been passed down from generation to generation among the Hazaras, a Persian-speaking ethnic group in Afghanistan. The dance is one of several traditional dances performed by women and is based on steps and different sounds from lips, mouth and throat, often inspired by nature, with significant cultural symbolism and value. The dance was performed in front of a mixed audience, often at festivals, ceremonies and festivities. Due to the war, systematic ethnic cleansing, slavery, persecution and political instability that has deeply affected the Hazar people in Afgahnistan many traditions have disappeared and with them the dances, their meaning and symbolism.

A part of the festival A night with Buddha, Re(dance) Pish-Po is a residence for dance at Sjösala Dansbana where three professional dancers together with Monirah Hashemi will have the opportunity to learn the ancient steps from an Afghan woman who herself learned the steps in her youth. During the residency, the dance will once again be welcomed into space, deconstructed, redeveloped and preserved so that it can be experienced, shared and given new life.

Choreography and dance: Isabel Gunn, Linn Eriksson, Monirah Hashemi och Tove Klang.

The performance was a live stream of a work in progress showing of the residency Re(dance) Pish-Po at Sjösala Dansbana.