A collaborative dance-theatre performance project exploring the hidden histories of indentured labourers shipped from India to South Africa by the British Colonial Government, Caste Away on the Spirit of Trade will piece together the stories and journeys of indentured labourers and their descendants over the last 150 years, finding connections between people across continents and across generations. Three productions made in the UK, South Africa, India will form a trilogy of dance-theatre linked by the cultural traditions that travelled with indentured labourers.

Artistic directors Melissa Eveleigh (UK), Abhishek Majumdar (India) and James Cuningham (South Africa) will work with artists including leading South African playwright, actor and director Rajesh Gopie, who is himself descended from indentured labourers and whose project The Coolie Odyssey has toured South Africa and India, and acclaimed Liverpool-based playwright Esther Wilson, whose work interrogates our relationship with our past and memories of our cities.

Arts For Action in partnership with Indian Ensemble and Market Theatre South Africa