Back to the Roots is a community-based dance project by Mozambican dancer and choreographer Edivaldo Ernesto, centred on the return of artistic knowledge to its place of origin. The project proposes a free, intensive two-week workshop in Maputo based on Ernesto’s Depth Movement practice, alongside scholarships for young dancers from socially and economically under-resourced communities. Combining technique, improvisation, choreographic tools, and mentorship, the workshop creates a rare space for professional training, exchange, and visibility within Mozambique’s limited contemporary dance infrastructure. More than a pedagogical initiative, Back to the Roots is conceived as an act of solidarity and continuity, reconnecting global artistic circulation with local contexts and nurturing long-term artistic development. The project is envisioned as the foundation for an ongoing annual programme fostering sustained cultural exchange between Mozambican and international dance communities.
Edivaldo Ernesto is an internationally recognised dancer, choreographer, and teacher based in Berlin, whose work bridges African and contemporary dance practices through performance, pedagogy, and improvisation.
