In Malabo (the capital of Guinea Equatorial) there are neither official music schools nor dances ones. Nevertheless, dance is an essential part of the life of young people; the heart around which social relationships are articulated.

Knowledge is transmitted from one to another, and gathers elements that come from the tribal dances performed by each of the ethnic groups; knowledge learnt within the families, and merged with the enormous Afro-American influence that, brought by TV or Internet, permeates the whole of Guinea’s culture.

After two months’ work in the ‘Centro Cultural de España’ in Malabo, La Phármaco brings together three dancers in order to erode all of their influences and styles, so it just remains Abok, or ‘dance’ in the Fang language, the ethnicity to which the majority of the dancers belong.

In this rite, the physical expression of La Phármaco lives together with Equatorial Guinean tribal dances, the rhythms of African traditional drums and baroque western music pieces.

A rite where those who live remember, physically, those who are not here any longer; and yet they stay with us, dancing like a shadow through our bodies.

*Abok is dedicated in memory of Pedro Luis Nba Mitsunu, one of the dancers who used to be part of our cast, and who passed away, victim of a shipwreck, in August 2016.

DIRECTION AND DRAMATURGY

Luz Arcas and Abraham Gragera

CHOREOGRAPHY

Luz Arcas

DANCERS

Neftalí Castaño Gerona, Miguel Faustino Obiang Asumu, José Manuel Ondó Mangué

PIANO

Carlos González

VOICE

Laura Fernández Alcalde

LIGHTING

Jorge Colomer

PHOTOGRAPGY

Jorge Colomer and Enrique Escorza

COLLABORATE

CCEM, FIIAPP and AECID