In the wake of the Paris noir exhibition at the Centre Pompidou, MansA inaugurates its MansA Heritage cycle with an exceptional evening of storytelling, music and dance.
As the Centre Pompidou celebrates Black Paris from the 1950s to 2000 with a major exhibition bringing together works by some 150 artists from Africa, its European diaspora, the Americas, and the Caribbean, MansA is kicking off its MansA Heritage cycle with a grand musical and festive evening on Sunday, April 27, 2025, at La Bellevilloise in Paris.
In this dance party imagined by artist Jay One Ramier, Marc Vorchin and his Paris Noir Orchestra will take us back to the sounds and vibrations of the great balls and parties of the last century, when biguine, jazz, mambo, calypso and rumba were the order of the day. As for Sébastien Quesada, his batà drums will be in full swing.
In the first part of the evening, journalist and host Bintou Simporé (Radio Nova), along with her colleague Reza Pounewatchy (TV5 Monde), will discuss with their guests the musical, political, and identity-related excitement that marked Parisian life between the wars. This includes the famous Bal Blomet, the jazz, Latin, and Afro-Caribbean rhythms of the capital's clubs in the 50s and 60s, and the back-and-forth movement of major orchestras between Africa, the Caribbean, and Europe in the 70s.
A journey with many stops
A panel of history and dance enthusiasts will take you on a multi-stop journey through various interpretations of African rhythms, from New Orleans and the West Indies, exploring themes of dispersion and reunion. Then, we'll head to Paris for a Black "renaissance" that unfolded in the 1930s, encompassing the Negritude movement, Pan-Africanism, and musical encounters in a cosmopolitan Paris. Finally, we'll move through the 60s and 70s, where social movements and musical experimentation laid the groundwork for the major contemporary musical movements of Black Paris.
The guests
This Jazz Sauce Combo will welcome Chantal Loïal, dancer and choreographer, creator of the Difé Kako company and producer of the traveling festival Mois Kréyol; Laura Bini Carter, a researcher in social anthropology; Valérie-Ann Edmond Mariette, a doctoral student in history at the University of the Antilles; Brice Ahounou, an anthropologist, journalist, and head of the “Mercredis du film ethnographique” at the Musée de l’Homme; Gilles Elie-Dit-Cosaque, a director, photographer, and graphic designer; Emmanuelle Honorin, a journalist and music producer, organizer of the Creole ball and tango ball at La Bellevilloise; and Roger Raspail, a percussionist, master of the ka drum, and gwoka professor at the Philharmonie de Paris. Some of the musicians gathered in the Paris Noir Orchestra by Marc Vorchin (leader of the cult band Mambomania and Caribop) will join the discussions before the concert that follows.
Members of the Paris Noir Orchestra
Marc Vorchin: saxophones, flute, vocals, conducting
Aude Publes: vocals, percussion
Hubert Mathieu: vocals, percussion
Daniel Misaine: violin, vocals
Brice Perda : flugabone, sousaphone
Harold Abraham: piano, keyboard
Mano Falla: bass
Bago Balthazar: percussion
Thomas Bellon: drums
Sébastien Quesada: batà drums, percussion
