THE ARENA

National Arts Festival, Grahamstown launches new section to programme.

The Arena is a new wheel added to the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown cart this year. The Arena programme is funded by the National Arts Council as an additional Festival platform to bridge the gap between the Festival’s Main and Fringe programmes and will also run from June 20 to July 4.

Producers from across South Africa, and internationally, were invited to present work on the Arena as a joint venture between themselves and the Festival.

“We invited productions for a number of reasons,” said Festival Director Ismail Mahomed. “The work comes from either established companies presenting something new and exciting, or from the bright young stars of tomorrow who have made a name for themselves on the Festival Fringe. Then there are also the established productions that have received rave reviews or awards elsewhere that we believe need to benefit from an expanded audience that the Festival can offer,” he added.

There are 16 productions on the Arena stage this year, including theatre, music and dance. The theatre productions of the Arena programme are all presented at the Loerie Hangar. Washa Mollo, a Mothertongue Project directed by Sarah Mathcett, is a physical theatre collaboration between five Southern African women who explore narratives of loss grief and healing in a visual tapestry of movement, sound and story. Band on the Run, written and performed by Kurt Egelhof and directed by Nic Fine explores the relationship between three young creatives of mixed race during the politically turbulent eighties in South Africa. In Dogs of the Blue Gods directed by Jonathan Taylor, author Ian Fraser unmasks society through the eyes of four police dogs trapped in a police facility. This hysterical satirical allegory is a children’s show for adults where the dogs are played by actors on all fours, and is in essence a condemnation of brutalisation through military-style training and brain-washing.

Zinzi Princess Mhlongo is directing 4.48 Psychosis, the story of an intelligent black woman locked up in a psychiatric hospital, suffering from pathological grief. Her inner soul is expressed through music produced by the band Travellin Blak, and her story reveals the transformation of her thoughts. Wombtide is an unconventional love story, originally written by Lara Foot and directed for Grahamstown by Rob Murray. Presented by FTH:K and set in the mid-20th century South Africa, it follows an eccentric and somewhat dysfunctional family through a story of lost, love and ultimate hope, told through the memory of a child. it features a stellar crew of collaborators in a spectacular tale of visual and physical storytelling.

Twelve young performers from the Talawa Theatre company of Londen joins multi-award winning turntablist DJ Matman, digital artist Collin Hills and Krump Junkies’ Kymberlee Jay on stage for Krunch, directed by Amani Naphtali. My First Sony is an award-winning monodrama performed by Roy Horovitz, written by Benny Barbash, that has toured Israel for over 13 years. It is the story of the deterioration of an Israeli family, as told by the 11-year old Yotam, who follows the tragic events of his parents’ separation and records them accurately on his tape recorder. Peter Hayes has written and performs in I am Here, a play about dreams and nightmares, steeped in the reality of lived experience directed by Jacqueline Dommisse, and produced by the Heart and Eyes Theatre Collective.

Bringing together performers from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Malawi and the UK, Tariro explores the currents underlying the crises in Zimbabwe through poetic storytelling, dance, original song, soundscape, visuals and intelligent text. The production is produced by Malawian theatre company Nanzikambe Arts, in collaboration with internationally acclaimed Tumbuka Dance from Zimbabwe, directed by Melissa Eveleigh.

The dance programme of the Arena is presented at the Alec Mullins Hall. Moses is a multi-media chore-poem addressing issues of political identity in an era that is post – Thabo Mbeki’s “I am an African” speech. Utilising music from Miriam Makeba and poetry by Lebo Mashile, Ingrid Jonker and Thabo Mbeki, as adapted by Musa Hlatshwayo. Hatched, choreographed, directed and performed by Mamela Nyamza, is a movement piece that seeks to convey deeply personal and challenging issues of culture, tradition, and a woman’s evolving sexuality within the customary rites and rituals of marriage.

The Music line-up of the Arena will host Christopher Duigan in the Rhodes Chapel with Celebrating Chopin. With a parish document detailing the birth of Frédéric Chopin on February 22, 1810, the official date of March 1 was the date the composer usually used. Now 200 years later Christopher Duigan presents a selection of his music devoting two piano recitals to Chopin’s magnificent piano writing. Widely regarded as one of South Africa’s leading concert pianists Christopher Duigan has maintained a busy concert career having performed extensively in recitals and with all major South African orchestras.

18 Strings is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to spend an evening in the company of three of South Africa’s most extraordinary guitarists: Nibs van der Spuy, Guy Buttery and Steve Newman. In what promises to be a master class in the gentle art of guitar, these artists will each perform a solo set before taking the stage for an unforgettable collaboration in the Guy Butler Theatre. Nearly half a century of commitment to young musicians has made the South African National Youth Orchestra Foundation the leader of the youth orchestral movement in the country and its Strings ensemble is selected from the crème de la crème of South Africa’s young string players. Look forward to a varied programme of the best string orchestra music through the ages, conducted by young Swedish conductor and violinist Fredrik Burstedt.

The Ecstasy and Irony of Dimitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) programme features two of the greatest chamber works that Shostakovich composed, both coming to life in the time of World War II. These works are full of the longing for freedom and peace against the background of the devastation and cruelty that Shostakovich experienced so acutely through the condemnation of his work and the loss of life all around him. Performing will be Zanta Hofmeyr (violin), Susan Mouton (cello), Malcolm Nay (piano) with assisting artists in the quintet Jacques Fourie (violin) and Elmarie van der Vyver (viola).

Louis Mhlanga is one of South Africa’s most talented guitarists. His stature as a musical star has already been firmly established both within the Afro-jazz music industry and broader as a mainstream artist. He is in demand as a recording artist and performer, and works extensively with other musicians and producers in the film and television industries. He will be joined on the Arena stage by Basi Mahlasela (percussion), Sello Montwedi (drums), Jimi Indi Phiri (bass) and Owen Chimuka (keyboards).

Another new venture at the Festival this year is a newly created venue, the Urban Lounge. This new venue will be the gathering point for Spoken Word artists, emerging music bands, street performers, stilt-walkers and fire dancers. The Urban Lounge is sure to become the new signature space where festinos come to chill at night.

Also making its debut this year at the Festival is the Standard Bank Ovation Award which will give accolades to some of the most exciting work presented on the Festival’s Fringe programme. South African arts critic and theatre historian Adrienne Sichel will head a panel of reviewers who will highlight those productions on the Fringe which truly deserve an ovation and hopefully an extended season in other theatres in South Africa.

Check out www.nationalartsfestival.co.za for the full programme or pick up a copy of the Booking Kit / Programme at selected Exclusive Books and Standard Bank branches, and Computicket Outlets. For more information call the Festival hot line on 046 603 1103 or follow the festival on Twitter @artsfestival or on Facebook: facebook.com/nationalartsfestival