It is hot a dry this time of year in Ouagadougou. Red dust hovers in the air the way humidity does on a hot day in July in Toronto. Coming back, there is a kind of is a kind of familiarity allowing us to step in where we left off and deepen relationships quickly.
Day 01: Studio
I remember now the first time Bienvenue brought me here. The complex was built by a French woman a few years ago, it is enviable, three studios built around a courtyard with tables and a café.
We work from 1-6pm in the largest studio/theatre. Next to us a painter prepares a 30 foot canvas. Doors are open, people come and go, keeping us from being too cloistered or precious about our work.
Bienvenue’s physicality is refreshing. The sounds of other rehearsals surround us, making their way into our rhythms.
John and Bema creating sounds for use in the score at a compound 10 min away.
John MacLean, Sibema Konate, Ouagadougou Burkina Faso
