Israeli dance/music troupe Mayumana recently performed to rave reviews at the Ankara Music Festival. It was the group's first Turkish appearance after having performed its percussion-driven theatrical show in over 70 cities worldwide. These "skilled" -- Meyumanut means "skill" -- performers are renowned for their high energy a la Blue Man Group and Stomp!"Basically, the idea is to combine all the skills that we possibly can on stage," dancer/violinist Tania Vinokur recently stated. "All those skills of everybody who can dance, sing, act, use humor, body language and acrobatics come together through the rhythm."
Comprised of roughly 100 members, from all corners of the world. The show is predominantly dance and drum driven, where dancers often use their own bodies, among many other things, as a form of percussion. "We use also instruments," Vinokur said. "For example, I play the violin, but in the show the instruments used do not have to be the ones you used to see in a music band. It is not like drums set only. We use tunes, we use our body to play and we use steel drums and barrels."
During a time when tensions between Israel and Turkey are high, with Jewish/Muslim concerns, Vinokour offered a more universal approach to culture.
"I think the company is about internationalism and about combining and about languages. We speak only one language. This is the music, and it is known for everybody."
Watch a video of Mayumana perform live after the jump.
