Umunyana is a spirit from Rwandan culture that appears in the form of a small cow. This ambiguous sign can bring happiness and long life or, if the spirit sees you first, death. This way, the cow—a central figure in the Rwandan landscape—takes on a spiritual, almost sacred dimension, even as they are slaughtered en masse. Cedric Mizero—a self-taught artist from Kigali working at the intersection of visual art, dance, and performance—reflects on the paradox in this performance: how can one kill what one reveres? To answer the question, he interweaves fictional stories with childhood memories and cultural rituals, myth with history.

In fragmented scenography spread across two spaces, video imagery appears of Rwandan landscapes and gatherings. A group of performers produce sounds by playing animal horns and dance choreographies reminiscent of stomping animal hooves. Mizero evokes a disappearing rural world, exposing the tension between tradition and consumption, protection and violence. For him, the large-scale slaughter of livestock also serves as a metaphor for genocide. UMUNYANA is a piece that shows collective trauma and the rapid transformation of a country. It sings of the invisible bonds between humans, animals, the past, and the earth.