US Tour: “Nass” by Fouad Boussouf – Compagnie Massala

Compagnie Massala – Fouad Boussouf is finally in the United States, at ICA, Boston,  and then, at The Joyce Theater,  New York.

Seven men exalt the power of the collective in an intense and acrobatic dance. Their engine? The rhythm! Incessant, obsessive, it brings out the bubbling and breathes energy into the bodies. 

At the edge of the profane and the sacred, between an unbridled modernity and the attachment to the rites that still protect it, Näss confronts the popular and urban dimension of hip hop dance with the deeply ritual and sacred aspect that it can summon. 

Näss means “people” in Arabic, in reference to the famous group Nass el Ghiwane (Bohemian people) who introduced the Gnawa culture in the 1970s with the hippie movement. The group’s poetic and non-conformist lyrics earned them several prison terms, but also allowed the emergence of Moroccan rap, with its committed lyrics, echoing the American model. The history of the famous group Nass el Ghiwane from the 1970s in the Maghreb was an important element in Fouad Boussouf’s inspiration. 

Read more about Fouad Boussouf here.

Since January 2022, Fouad is the Director of the National Choreographic Center (CCN)  in Le Havre

October 14-15 at ICA, Boston  presented by Global Arts Live

October 18-23 at The Joyce Theater, New York 

New York: The presentation of Näss is part of the French Institute Alliance Française’s (FIAF) Crossing The Line Festival 

The tour of Näss has been made possible with the support of FUSED (French U.S. Exchange in Dance), a program of Villa Albertine and FACE Foundation, in partnership with the French Embassy in the United States, and Institut français.