Cirque Kalabante: World of Words

Cirque Kalabanté: WOW, World of Words explores communication beyond spoken language through circus, storytelling, music, and movement. At Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, the production brings two groups together on a stage divided by a symbolic line. One shares ancestral African knowledge through stories, songs, and ritual initiation, while the other receives, learns, and sometimes resists. As language becomes an obstacle, gesture, rhythm, and sound form a new vocabulary. Double Dutch skipping, bungee straps, rope-based contortion, and acrobatic contact become pathways for dialogue. Guided by Trust, Respect, and Wisdom, the performers gradually dissolve the boundary between them, blending traditional and contemporary movement in a choreography of unity and collective awakening. Kalabanté Productions was founded in Montreal in 2007 by Yamoussa Bangoura, a multidisciplinary artist of Guinean origin whose work draws on West African traditions and international circus experience. The company now performs worldwide and operates a Montreal studio and school offering African dance, circus, and drumming classes.