Award-winning New York/Harare choreographer and dancer Nora Chipaumire has challenged and embraced stereotypes of Africa and the black performing body, art, and aesthetic for the past decade. In this solo inspired by the iconic The Rite of Spring, celebrating its centenary in the same year, she explored the contemporary demands for sacrifice, embodied in performance and by the performer. 

The genesis of rite riot began with Chipaumire’s fascination with the The Rite of Spring and the role it played in the European art movement known as 'Primitivism' and the exploration of the notion of sacrificial offering. Chipaumire’s rite riot also explored the contemporary demands for sacrifice in various elements of society, with a focus on challenging the colonial perspective of the original work and the assumptions of age, social status, and vulnerability that defined the sacrificial victim.

Dramaturgy for this piece included research into the history of Rite of Spring and the notion of sacrifice, feedback and discussion of piece structure, and matchmaking with the author/artist who wrote the wall text (James Hannaham).