‘Les Basketteuses de Bamako’, a group of six Malian artists and basketball players took to the stage in Lomé, the capital of Togo. Their daring and creative show combines juggling of the ball, drumming, music and dance.
“This project is based on rhythm and sound. We play with balls, sneakers, drums, and sticks. There’s a lot of equipment and dancing. It’s not basketball, but it’s basketball mixed with music,” said Kadiatou Togola, a member of Les Basketteuses de Bamako, underlining the importance of this artistic fusion.
Under the direction of Thomas Guérineau, a former juggler with a passion for the intersections between movement, rhythm and music, these Malian artists use the ball as the central instrument of their artistic expression.
“This is work I created with Malian artists, women basketballers from Bamako. I started working with them in November 2021. So it’s been over two years,” explained Guérineau.
“What’s surprising is that when you hit a basketball, it’s actually a three-beat sound, a syncopated three-beat,” he added.
*The views of the above article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Africa Speaks 4 Africa or its editorial team.