Cirque Kalabanté

Kalabanté Productions was created by Yamoussa Bangoura, a multidisciplinary artist of Guinean origin. Yamoussa’s dream was to found a school of circus arts and direct his own multidisciplinary company specializing in African arts.  

Yamoussa first became interested in Circus Arts as a young man growing up in Conakry, Guinea, in the 1990s. He studied the circus performers he saw on European TV and practiced on the beach and dirt around his home. He also studied the Nyamakala tradition of circus, practiced by the Fula people of West Africa. He eventually joined Guinea’s original circus company, Circus Baobob, with whom he toured Africa and Europe. 

In the early 2000s, Yamoussa was recruited to come to Canada with Cirque Eloize, a Montreal-based Canadian cirque company. While in Canada, he also performed with Cirque du Soleil and Cavalia (a cirque with horses). In 2007, Yamoussa realized his dream and opened his own company, Kalabanté Productions, in Montreal, Canada. He recruited many of his extended family members to join the company, including his twin sisters, brothers, and cousins.

The company began performing shows in Quebec and has since expanded to all of Canada and the USA and performs all over the world. In 2018, Kalabante opened its own studio and school in Montreal, where it offers classes in African dance, cirque, and drumming.

Kalabante Productions is proud to share its work, achievements and skills to inspire others and assist with the humanitarian mission to help the Guinean community from which Yamoussa and many of its company members come.