Available online
Commissioned by Sadler’s Wells, Jonzi D’s new black-and white film powerfully weaves poetry and dance in a tribute to black women who have suffered violence
Under a blanket of white cloud on a Montreal rooftop, dancer Axelle “Ebony” Munezero’s hands clasp over her mouth while potent words ring out in the voice of poet jessica Care moore. “I got life. / Sandra Bland got the death penalty / for a traffic stop. Her body was 28 / years young.” Munezero’s body flinches with every beat, each one a violent blow.
The black-and-white film, Our Bodies Back, is only five minutes long, but it’s a rich and powerful weaving of poetry and dance. At once a moving tribute to Bland, Breonna Taylor and countless black women who’ve suffered violence, and a clear-eyed, undaunted demand for respect and urgent change.