Dancer and choreographer Faustin Linyekula left his home country of the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the political upheaval and civil war that followed the 2001 assassination of leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. More than 5 million people were killed and the country cemented its position as one of the world's poorest countries. Linyekula will visit New Zealand in February 2020 to perform his work In Search of Dinozord at the New Zealand Festival of the Arts. In Search of Dinozord is the result of an invitation by Peter Sellars to mark the 250th anniversary of Mozart's death and the composer's Requiem informs the work, which recounts how the history of Linyekula's country has impacted personal stories of his friends in Kisangani, the city where he grew up.