“It’s a real asset and a small laboratory where we experiment with living together” Cyrille Loua, president of the Tremplin Gospel Association, has just organized a musical show performed by a team made up of more than a hundred dancers, musicians, choreographers… Despite his professional commitments, this hydraulic engineer, present in Morocco since 2002, has remained attached to his artistic passion. A look back at his latest show ”Croissance”.
On October 26, 2024, you organized the third edition of your Gospel show in Casablanca. What is the objective of your artistic programming?
The “Growth” Gospel concert is organized every year at the Studio des arts Vivants in Casablanca. And each year we hope to do better or go further than the last, hence the title “Growth”. We give a particular theme to the concert. It has become a habit.
The one from the first edition was “Sans Limites”, from the second edition “Beyond Borders” and this year “Victory Songs”. We try, through song, dance, mime… to highlight everything that is common to humanity, everything that transcends skin colors, religions, cultures, borders. Our message is joy, emotion, tears, laughter, dance, peace, life… everything that God has given us freely, everything that has no color or nationality, these are gifts to share. This is why our concerts are journeys through different languages, styles, rhythms from several continents and several languages. We never forget to wink to the Kingdom of Morocco which welcomes us all
Around a hundred artists representing different artistic styles performed on this occasion, how exactly do you prepare for this event?
Preparation for the concert takes place over several months. We start around February, I would like to remind you at the same time that the concert generally takes place in October. That’s almost 10 months of preparation for all the teams (singing, stage creativity, musicians, choreographers, etc.). There are around fifty people who are full members of the association and we sometimes call on volunteers to help us prepare for the concert. In the end, the “growth” concert is about a hundred people in action and none of us are full-time artists. Indeed, Tremplin Gospel is a cultural association which brings together workers and students, all volunteers.
More or less experienced instrumentalists and singers with different cultural backgrounds working together. It is not always easy to find free time but by the grace of God we get there. We rehearse on weekends or often in work mode, especially during the night from Friday to Saturday.
Can you tell us about the artistic activities of your concert?
We mainly do Gospel which we do not hesitate to revisit in the sauce of our cultures and our influences, which gives each year a unique, different, very diverse and rich show. But the Gospel, which means good news, has a spiritual base. And this is why our songs speak of spiritual values such as love, forgiveness, peace, tolerance, Hope, faith etc.
This year, all the songs composed or performed had a common theme: “victory”. Because we believe that those who live are not those who struggle, but those who triumph. And that victory is not the privilege of some, but a gift from God to all.
Those who live are those who triumph over limits, over differences, those who go beyond barriers to embrace living together.
During your performance, the teams that followed one another on stage brandished several flags, including that of Morocco. What messages did you want to convey to viewers?
We have more than ten nationalities in the group, from West Africa (Gabon, Ivory Coast, Burkina, Mali, Ghana, Togo, Benin), Central Africa (DRC, Congo Brazza, Cameroon, Gabon, Central Africa, etc.), but also from Kenya, Madagascar, Haiti, etc. the Gospel Tremplin brings together young people under the age of 20 but also fathers of families over the age of forty, young girls but also mothers.
It is a real wealth and a small laboratory where we experience living together. We try to communicate this message through our music by saying that it is possible to live together. Our greatest joy is to see, as was the case again on Saturday 26, a room full of people of all origins, dancing and singing with one heart. It is a happiness that rewards us beyond anything else, and reminds us that we are in a bond of love.
What are your prospects for the next edition?
We will organize the fourth edition of Croissance in 2025, and we hope, with God’s help, to find a larger venue to welcome more people to this beautiful celebration of living together. Depending on the availability of the team, we also have plans to participate in other artistic projects and concerts organized by third parties.
