Aminata Soumaré

VOI(X)E is a raw and intuïtive dance performance in which movement and sound dialogue with each other – breathing becomes groove, groove becomes voice and voice becomes rhythm. Four dancers – Aminata Soumaré, Abir Gharbi, Maïté Huizenga & Ines Mendoza – explore the fields of tension between chaos and calm, voice and body, rhythm and meaning.

Aminata Soumaré (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist from Ghent with Malian roots. She prefers to tell stories through the lens of others – through words, voices and experiences that translate her own experience. Aminata is a practiced hip-hop dancer, active in both the mainstream and underground scene, and graduated with a master’s degree in Radio from the RITCS. In addition to her passion for dance, she creates audio collages and music, exploring how sound and movement can play an equal role on stage. Aminata likes to work in the tension between intimacy and discomfort; cultural frictions challenge her to create new ones.

In 2024, Aminata was nominated for the NTR Podcast Prize with LINGO, an audio collage about the use of the N-word in Dutch-language media. She won two awards with her first solo performance Bare Feet, which premiered at the Brussels Freestyle Lab Festival in 2025.

Abir Gharbi (she/her) is a freestyle dancer specializing in house and hip-hop, and aspiring DJ. She organizes socio-cultural events and is active in the underground scene, including with The Clubbing Night Project.

Maïté Huizenga (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist and social worker who explores the relationship between body and voice. Through hip-hop, traditional Chadian dance and stand-up, she creates her own multilingual movement language.

Ines Mendoza (she/he) is a performer and choreographer with a background in contemporary dance, hip-hop, freestyle, jazz and classical dance. Freestyle is at the core of her practice and drives both her artistic expression and choreographic research.

Credits: Concept and choreography: Aminata Soumaré // Dance: Aminata Soumaré, Abir Gharbi, Maïté Huizenga & Ines Mendoza // With support from MESTIZO ARTS PLATFORM/WIPCOOP.

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