Johnny Clegg has been enthralling audiences around the world for the better part of three decades, and he is not tired yet, as his latest offering, Heart of the Dancer, shows.

The show looks at the history of the indlamu dance

JOHNNY CLEGG has always been breathtaking on stage, but his latest concert - on at the Johannesburg Civic Theatre - takes the cake.

Performed against a kaleidoscopic backdrop of rustic scenes, Heart of the Dancer takes audiences back to the days when Zulu impis scoured the plains a century ago right up to contemporary times of Zulu migrant workers dancing to maskandi at urban men-only hostels.

The dance is electrifying and Clegg does not disappoint with his energetic singing. Heart of the Dancer looks at the role of dance in Clegg's musical career and how certain songs were shifted towards choreographic presentations when they were performed live.

The show, which opened to much acclaim on Wednesday, 18 June, also looks at the history of one particular dance, the indlamu, which was widely used in Clegg's Juluka and Savuka incarnations. The show includes songs from his old repertoire as well as tunes from his latest solo album, One Life.

A lesson in Zulu history and dance is taught when "The White Zulu" performs Impi, one of the audience's favourites. Clegg goes back to the historic Battle of Isandlwana, where a Zulu impi defeated a British force at the foot of the mountain of Isandlwana, in KwaZulu-Natal, in the late 19th century.

The song is performed by Clegg, backed by a Zulu dance troupe performing the war dance interspersed with the indlamu, a traditional Zulu dance where the dancer lifts one foot high up over his head and brings it down with a heavy thump.

Another Zulu dance was born out of the motor car - the ibhampi. In this dance, the dancer lightly "bumps" his foot down, similar to a car hitting a bump in the road. It infuses a lighter form of the indlamu, and the bended foot is lifted just high enough for it to make a thumping sound on the ground.

Hostel life
Then there is the inqo-nqo, which developed later, when Zulu dancers performed in crowded hostels for entertainment. Because of limited space in these dwellings, the indlamu was redefined, with the foot lifted just high enough not to kick the person in front. It is then brought down to make a "nqo!" sound. Immediately the foot is square on the ground, the dancer throws himself back on to his bottom.

With the audience clamouring for more, Clegg upped his performance a notch with Ibhola Lethu, a Juluka standard from the early 1980s that tells about South African soccer. In this song, dancers square up to outdo each on the dance floor, accompanied by thumping drums.

The show also takes a swipe at the political drama unfolding in South Africa's northern neighbour. Clegg performs his latest song, The Revolution Will Eat Its Children (Anthem for Uncle Bob), with a huge screen in the background flashing scenes of Robert Mugabe as president of a prosperous country, moving to a president on the path of self-destruction.

Heart of the Dancer is on at the Nelson Mandela Theatre at the Civic Theatre complex until 29 June 2008. Tickets go for R150 and are available at Computicket outlets, on 083 915 8000, or through the Computicket website.

For more information on the show, call Jeanette Odgers on 011 482 3550. The Johannesburg Civic Theatre is on Loveday Street, in Braamfontein.

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