Aly Keita (choreographer)

Aly Keita (born March 25, 1991, in Conakry, Guinea) is a choreographer, dancer, circus artist, musician, and singer based in Montreal.

As a multidisciplinary artist, his artistic achievements and choreographic works bridge contemporary dance, African dances, circus arts (floor acrobatics, balancing, juggling), singing, and musical compositions.

He is also active in cultural mediation through collaborations with festivals, artistic and community organizations, and partnerships with institutions specializing in welcoming newcomers and health.

Aly Keita's artistic career began in Conakry, Guinea, at the age of 13, when he practiced Afro-urban dances and hip-hop.

In 2007, he enrolled at the Centre acrobatique Keita Fodeba to learn circus arts, a specialization that opened the door to multidisciplinary practice as he also trained in traditional ballet and music.

Inspired by the Mandingo Empire, an ancient Malian empire dating from the 13th century, and particularly the Epic of Sundiata, an epic poem recounting the foundation of the Mandingo Empire by Sundiata Keita, its founder and ruler, Keita's 25-minute piece is based on the legend known as The Awakening of the Lion.

Through movements and acrobatics, the piece narrates the determination of the prince, who, as a child, was deposed because he could not walk.

Through sheer determination, the future ruler managed to walk, impressing his people and uniting the territories of West Africa to form the great Mandingo Empire.

This choreographic and musical work is supported by organizations such as the Fondation de la Place-des-Arts, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, La Serre - Arts vivants, and the Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal.

In 2016, Keita left his native Africa for an intercultural exchange between young Guinean circus artists and their Inuit counterparts from Nunavut.

This project, created by Guillaume Saladin, co-founder of the troupe Artcirq, and Yamoussa Bangoura, who founded the troupe Kalabanté, allowed Aly Keita to engage with another culture while addressing themes such as suicide, despair, and poverty, culminating in the documentary Circus Without Borders.

In 2019, Keita refined his dance skills with the Nyata Nyata Dance Company (Montreal), founded in 1986 by Canadian dancer, writer, and choreographer Zab Maboungou.

Since 2020, Keita has focused on his work Djata: Conversations du Manden, a solo artistic performance combining Afro-contemporary and acrobatic dances, performed to live and prerecorded music, with several musicians playing percussion and the sanza.