Hannah Ma is a bold feminist choreographer and founder of hannahmadance, an interdisciplinary company launched in 2015. Working across Germany, Luxembourg, and South Africa, her art tackles gender, race, colonialism, and identity through dance, installation, spoken word, and visual art. Rooted in feminist, anti-racist, and decolonial thought, Ma’s performances challenge power structures and center marginalized voices. Her works, like INVASIONS!, use movement as a form Of resistance and radical transformation, envisioning a world of justice and equality. Ma is also a founding member of United Networks, a nonprofit uniting racialised and marginalised artists and acttvists in Germany, and serves as director of The People United in Luxembourg.
PÊDRA COSTA (they) is a Performer, Visual & Urban Anthropologist, Interdisciplinary Artist,’ and Tarot Reader based in Vienna who utilises intimacy to foster ‘a sense of collectivity. Their approach merges art with activism, spirituality, and academia. Pedra’s artistic practice centers on the body as a primary mode of expression. They delve into the complexities of queer epistemologies, particularly within the context of ongoing colonial legacies, aiming to decode violence and transform failure into creative fuel. Through their mentoring, they have developed the concept of ‘Anti-Analysis’, a method based on discussions around art and/or academic work, primarily aimed at young and emerging artists. This approach helps artists navigate themes related to experience, creation, the art market, aesthetics, and critical discourse. Their diverse body of work continually provokes thought and inspires dialogues on conventional notions of art, identity, collectivity, invisible knowledge, and resistance/insistence.
Ondiege Matthew is a dancer, choreographer, and DANCE INTO SPACE founder, a group of contemporary dancers, socially engaged performance artists, and the only mixed ability contemporary dance company in East Africa. Through exploring personal stories and employing participatory methods, the company under Ondiege creates touring productions, teaches dance, empowers people with different abilities, raises awareness on human rights issues, and strengthens self-advocacy. DANCE INTO SPACE works with other civil society members, creatives and government agencies, carries out civic education, constitutional education and human rights awareness among citizens in Kenya through the creative arts. As a leading contemporary dance choreographer as well as an activist, Ondiege has been using the mixed ability dance projects as a creative approach to inclusiveness since 2005. The projects address stigma while tackling punitive cultural practices that promote discrimination and basic human rights violations among people with disability. He continues to produce new and original works with his team.