As a toddler, Mucyo, 27, hated two things; school and guhamiriza, which is a warriors' parade made of regiments of ‘Intore’ (the chosen ones, the fighters), who used to perform carrying actual weapons. Present-day Intore are not armed, but they carry replicas of spears and shields. Born Arnaud Kanyankore Mucyo to an artist mother, a life immersed in creativity was inevitable. In fact, if he could perfect the two trades; school and art, he would have been the perfect son. The good news is that he eventually did. Mucyo, also known by his stage name Mucyowicyogere, holds a Master of Science in Information Technology from Carnegie Mellon University, with a focus on Software Development, and he is among the most famous Intore at the moment. He is also a traditional-contemporary dancer, playwright, poet, and Kinyarwanda language enthusiast, among others. ALSO READ: Guhamiriza: Ibihame on quest to restore Rwanda’s authentic culture During the first days of December, UNESCO announced its inscription of Intore dance (guhamiriza) on its Intangible Cultural Heritage List. What's more, Mucyo is among the young people on the quest to restore this authentic culture. Although he wears many hats, Mucyo is most famous as an Intore, something he learnt from his mother, Christine Mukundwa Milimba, who had quit her corporate job after acknowledging there was a gap in Rwandan traditional arts, and decided to take it upon herself to pass it to the next generation of Rwandans. She had just returned from exile, where she herself learned about the culture through dance as a young child. At the time, Rwanda was at the peak of a cultural dilution that had begun decades before. Furthermore, the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi had just been stopped, and singing and dancing were only a luxury that a few could afford emotionally. Nevertheless, they were the only way to preserve the gravely deteriorating culture. Mukundwa then started cultural programmes where young children would learn traditional and contemporary dance and theater during holidays. At the time, Mucyo was only a toddler who made it clear he wasn’t interested. However, as he grew older, he somehow enjoyed the trip from Huye- in Rwanda’s south where they lived, to the capital Kigali, so it made it worthwhile. ALSO READ: Rwanda’s ‘Intore’ dance recognized as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage “Even then, I didn’t like any traditional dance although it was easier for me to learn and do. I was more interested in contemporary dance, but I was terrible at it. When I told my mother about this concern, her eyes lit up because for her, that was a milestone. I could not love traditional dance then, but if I could perform it with ease, her mission would have been successful,” Mucyo said. Sadly, Mukundwa died leaving five children, but her initiative had already impacted some people, young and old, starting from her own family. All her five children are now active in the country’s art sector. “After her passing, guhamiriza has been my way of reconnecting with her and the ancestors from whom she inherited the legacy she left with us,” Mucyo said. “Guhamiriza is not for entertainment” Mucyo believes that Rwanda’s traditional arts, especially guhamiriza, are not for entertainment, but instead languages for memory transmission, and connecting with ancestors and the values they possessed. “What we do is not leisure, where you engage in it after everything important has been done. If I do this to keep the legacy of a loved one alive, why would the audience think I am trying to entertain them and make them laugh or pass time?” Mucyo asked. He added: “I then thought of an idea to change the narrative by having the dance accompanied by theater, so that the audience can also learn a thing or two about the performance. For example, during the guhamiriza performance, which is a warriors’ parade, certain war-like codewords are said, such as guca umugara, kuzibukira, kuvuna sambwe, kugwira inkindi, and more. People need to know what they mean.” Support needed Mucyo believes that much can be done to restore Rwanda’s authentic art culture, and the first thing that would be on his list is giving artists access to archives. “There are those in possession by government institutions, but there are others kept personally by different people. It would be helpful to access them both. However, we are grateful for the archives shared by the Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (RCHA), especially in music,” he noted. He added: “Another issue is that currently, there is no Artist’s Statute in Rwanda. You can’t register as an artist, so you are recognized as any other commercial company. In reality, artists often can’t quantify certain costs, and sometimes their work benefits the public. Balancing the cost, revenue, and profit is tricky in this situation.” Mucyo also believes that artists have a higher bargaining power on the international scene if they are legally recognized artists in their home countries. ALSO READ: I dedicated my life to being a full-time 'Intore' - Impakanizi Keeping the momentum Mucyo and his siblings kept their mother’s legacy and are realizing her dream of a cultural school, i Buhoro, for children and adults, teaching traditional dance, music, design, and costumes. According to Mucyo, they use the same curriculum the late Mukundwa was using to pass on knowledge. Cecile Umutoni, his sister, is the lead on the i Buhoro project. “It was our mother’s dream project, although she was mostly focusing on children. Today, we consider that some people didn’t have a chance to learn their culture in their childhood but are interested as adults, Mucyo said. He also emphasised the belief that being an Intore goes beyond dancing to holding all other Rwandan qualities, especially those of bravery, integrity, and unity. “Our heritage is part of our identity. It would be helpful for people to not see our performances as mere entertainment but as a way to connect to our roots,” he added. Mucyo is also putting his Master’s Degree to use by developing software projects that promote the knowledge of the culture, especially in memory and language.
