At the My Body My Space dance feast promises to transform the rural Mpumalanga streets into dance floors
This is as contemporary dance’s leading voices converge on rural Mpumalanga 7-14 March, 2026.
By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor
A rural backdrop in the province of Mpumalanga will be turned into a vibrant cultural experience for a week, as top notch dancers will hit the streets, triggering a live experience for local communities alike.
This is because the oragnisers of the annual dance feast, have confirmed that the annual dance extravaganza is on again this year, taking place from March 7 to March 14, 2026. If you are around the province and you would love to experience boots on the streets and other artistic treats, you better plan around this festival of the people.
This year top international names have been programmed to show what they are made of artistically and will showcase their dance skills alongside leading South African dancers, assisted by equally talented choreographers.
Therefore, this dance feast has the distinction of being a festival of its kind in the province, and has over the years, added value to the area’s cultural offering and heritage. This is something that you would not want to miss easily, and therefore CITYLIFE/ARTS is recommending this festival for both locals, visitors from urban areas and international tourists. The programme is tight, the names of the dancers and choreographers, both from South Africa and other countries, such as Ethiopia and Namibia, are quite alluring.
This is not the though, the only time this area because alive. In fact, every year, the small town of Entokozweni (Machadodorp) in Mpumalanga undergoes an extraordinary transformation. At the My Body My Space (MBMS)Public Arts Festival, sidewalks, schoolyards, church grounds and public parks become performance stages, as some of South Africa’s most respected contemporary dance-makers share space with emerging rural artists and young performers.
Presented by The Forgotten Angle Theatre Collaborative (FATC), MBMS brings high-calibre contemporary performance directly to rural communities – completely free of charge – while drawing dedicated audiences from Johannesburg and across the country.
This year’s festival features the work of Vincent Sekwati Koko Mantsoe, internationally celebrated choreographer and former Standard Bank Young Artist (SBYA), whose work bridges ancestral African spirituality and contemporary dance. Performing koma, Mantsoe returns to a South African rural stage with the physically and spiritually charged presence that has taken him to major venues worldwide.
Fana Tshabalala, also a SBYA and long-time FATC collaborator, presents (Co)ruption, a bold and urgent work interrogating corruption and water justice. Created in collaboration with young dancers, the piece reflects on personal accountability as much as political systems.
Flowing with the water theme, Thamsanqa “Thami” Majela (SBYA) and Lucia Walker present Water created humans to move itself around in interesting ways… These two skilled movers, having long admired each others’ fluid ability to engage in the language of movement and poetry, invite the audience to watch as they make instant choices in contact improvisation.
Award-winning choreographer Musa Hlatshwayo (SBYA), known for socially conscious and technically rigorous performance, joins the line-up alongside Thabiso Heccius Pule, whose, Unmasking Masculinity offers a layered exploration of gender, vulnerability and identity through movement.
The renowned company Moving Into Dance (MID), pioneers of Afro-fusion since 1978, present 7FM, and Aurora Ensemble, continuing their legacy of blending African dance traditions with contemporary forms.
A new and exciting solo work by Kaldi Makutike explores “the second coming” as a multi‑layered idea, unfolding across spiritual, social, and personal dimensions. Makutike also presents a new work developed in residency with interns of FATC’s dance programme.
Environmental concerns surface in Plastic Not So Fantastic, a Live Art collaboration by Joy Oosthuizen and Lynette du Plessis, interrogating consumption and waste through physical performance.
Kamogelo Molobye, a choreographer, performer, researcher, and lecturer based in Johannesburg, presents “To whom it may concern…” a 15-minute dance-theatre triptych exploring queer ecologies and the precarity of belonging.
From Namibia, performance scholar and artist Dr Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja brings a work that engages themes of archive, memory and embodied history.
Other international artists include Sophie Mutika, an Ethiopian-Korean sound artist, and Soraya Thomas from Reunion.
Nurturing a new generation
“One of the exciting untold stories of this festival is how people’s career success stories are woven together – there are five former SBYAs for Dance on the programme, but the work of these artists is very much about giving back to their roots, and nurturing the next generation,” explains FATC CEO PJ Sabbagha, himself a former SBYA. “Whether this is Vincent Mantsoe coming back from his travels to premiere a new production, Fana Tshabalala collaborating with our interns, or Thami Majela introducing his methods to rural audiences, there is an understanding that this festival is an important part of the development of the sector. All year round, we give weekly classes in community halls across the municipality, and these young performers will also be showcasing their work, some of whom will go on to build startling careers. Take Promise Mosoma, for example – she came through our Local Education in Arts Programme (LEAP), was one of our dance interns, and has already completed an international tour last year.” Fana Tshabala agrees: “Coming to FATC is coming home.”
The programme showcases this powerful generation of emerging artists, including Promise Mosoma who performs a solo, Tankiso Pheko and Sbusiso Blessing Gumede – performers whose careers have been shaped through community arts training and collaboration with seasoned professionals who understand the importance of strong mentorship. Who knows how many future award-winners will be dancing on Entokozweni’s streets on the 13th and 14th of March?
Beyond Performance
The 2026 festival opens on Friday evening at Pholani Park with a Community Arts Centre (CAC) Expo, highlighting creative initiatives from across Mpumalanga. Saturday’s performances travel between Emthonjeni and Chazon Tekna School before culminating in a dynamic “Dragon’s Den”-style Pitch Event, where creative entrepreneurs compete for seed funding to grow sustainable cultural enterprises.
MBMS is a reimagining of where world-class contemporary performance belongs – and who it belongs to.
The My Body My Space Public Arts Festival is supported by the National Arts Council of South Africa, the Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme, the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust, Emakhazeni Local Municipality, the National Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) Mzansi Golden Economy (MGE), and valued partners, including UJ Arts & Culture and Splitbeam Gearhouse. The CAC Expo is funded through DSAC MGE under the umbrella of the Community Arts Development.