Plethu/Weave: Rufus Mufasa & Camille Giraudeau

Mae’r Dŵr yn Dal Lle/Resurrect Dormant DNA by dancer Camille Giraudeau and literary activist, lyricist and rapper Rufus Mufasa explores themes of motherhood and how to create an inheritance for the next generation. The poem in full, and more details on the Plethu / Weave project, can be found here.

“Together, Rufus and I explored strong themes around Motherhood- what does it bring? And what does it do to us? Connecting to the idea of water and how it heals and cleanses, it’s used in many rituals and as a sign of life – this was one of many driving forces behind the film. How do we create an inheritance we can pass onto our children. 

Mirco, Macro. Incantation, Nursery rhyme. Sacred text, Riddles. Apple, Fruit. DNA, Dormant. Twilight. – This is our inheritance.”

Camille Giraudeau

“From our initial conversation it was clear that language was an area of interest to both Cami and I. I have been on a huge journey of discovery with the Welsh language during Covid, but could also trace it back to my second pregnancy, and the daily ritual of my eldest daughter and I in the bath, singing Welsh nursery rhymes to baby in my belly. The bath was also a shared starting point, and it was clear that we both felt that the bath was a place that “held space”, a space that reconnected us to self, to source, to ancestors, and to our children. Cami had also reconnected with mother tongue during pregnancy and shared French nursery rhymes, that had been dormant in her DNA until now. But language/mother tongue is our inheritance. 

In my practice at present, through exploring the religions and the scriptures, the frameworks that have been imposed on me have always been masculine, and the female voices and experiences have been eradicated, or slut-shamed if they survived. Goddesses and Mary Magdalene have been very present in my enquiry, and the Maiden, Mother, Crone concept has reclaimed the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.  

We also explored motherhood in the arts, and how the industry that we are in is sometimes fractured when supporting mother-artists. But motherhood brings with it a wealth of knowledge, and abundance of philosophy and insight, and mothers and our stories need to take up space. Just because Cami is due to have a baby does not mean that she can no longer dance. Cami should dance more. Her daughter is watching. Being an artist does not make you any less mother,  in fact it has helped me be a better one. 

Mothers need to see themselves in these spaces and narratives. We are an asset to the arts. Every time we create we are reconnected with our Creatrix, we become more resilient, and with resilience our children might have fairer frameworks in the future. There are an abundance of Goddesses in the wings, with extensive CV’s, waiting for you to pick up the phone.”

Rufus Mufasa