JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Festival: where every step tells a story at the Market Theatre

Get ready, dance lovers! The JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Festival is back for its third year in partnership with The Market Theatre. 

For the past 27 years, this festival has been a landmark event in KwaZulu-Natal, with Johannesburg starting to also get a taste of the experience. 

JOMBA! @ The Market is a smaller and carefully curated offering, held at the John Kani and Barney Simon Theatres.

This year, four dance companies will be presenting their work. 

“This is also our way of supporting excellence in South African dance at a time of distressed funding and a closing off of platforms for dance. We want to grow exposure for contemporary dance in Johannesburg with programming that focuses attention on the brilliant dance makers in our country who often garnish acclaim internationally but have limited local spaces to present their work,” says Greg Homann, artistic director of The Market Theatre Foundation.

A standout moment will be the honouring of veteran South African dance maker Sbonakaliso Ndaba as the 2025 JOMBA! Legacy Artist.

She is being celebrated for her innovative choreography, spanning over three decades in South Africa and internationally. 

She has shown her dedication to the performing arts through her work in establishing dance training programs such as Phenduka Dance Theatre, Indoni Dance Arts Academy, and, most recently, SboNdaba Dance. The latter is a non-profit organisation focused on bolstering the performing arts scene in Cape Town.

Ndaba and SboNdaba Dance present “In Search of Our Humanity” on Wednesday, September 10, at 8pm. 

This piece takes the audience through the emotional journey of South Africa’s evolution, from the ancient, free-roaming Khoi and San ancestors to the struggle for unity. It showcases the nation’s growth and defiance.

Other performances include Flatfoot Dance Company’s “Bodies of Water”, choreographed by Lliane Loots with six of her dancers, Jabu Siphika, Zinhle Nzama, Sifiso Khumalo, Siseko Duba, Sbonga Ndlovu and Ndumiso ‘Digga’ Dube. 

Set against African geopolitics, the piece is an artistic and political metaphor for survival. 

Other highlights include Soweto-born Asanda Ruda’s “KEMET (Black Lands)” piece, which earned her a residency at Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris. 

This work examines individuality and spiritual enlightenment through the transformative power of dance. 

Also, Réunion’s COMPANY SOUL CITY and dancer/choreographer, Didier Boutiana, brings his new solo “KANYAR epilogue” to the line-up. 

With his roots firmly entrenched as an expressive and transcendent dancer, his critical dive into fanaticism and painful self-glorification is reportedly one for the books. 

Where: The Market Theatre. 

When: September 10 to 13, times differ, so check the programme line-up when booking.