NAF CELEBRATES WITH AWARD NOMINEES

Nominations for the prestigious Fleur du Cap - and Naledi Awards have been announced recently, and the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown celebrates with the nominated productions and individuals that have been part of the Festival.

"The National Arts Festival is delighted that the Festival was the original platform for so many of the nominated productions and artists. We congratulate the nominees and, regardless of who wins, South Africans can be assured that these are artists with a determination to strive for excellence”, said Festival Director Ismail Mahomed. The Naledi Awards are planned for March 7, and the Fleur du Cap winners will be announced on March 20.

The largest bouquet of nominations has been scooped by the Cape Town-based theatre company FTH:K who have both a strong reputation and a following at the Festival. The company has been nominated for a total of seven awards between the Fleur de Cap and the Naledi awards.

Four Fleur du Cap Best Actress nominees came from productions that were staged at the 2010 Festival. Antoinette Kellerman (As die Broek Pas / Man to Man), Jennifer Steyn (Molly Bloom), Liezl de Kock (Wombtide) and Robyn Scott (London Road) graced the Festival stages in 2010. Two of the Best Supporting Actress nominees are also for Festival productions, with Liz Szymczak (Endgame) and Ntomboxolo Makhutshi (London Road) both in the run. Nat Ramabulana (The Girl in the Yellow Dress) has been nominated for the Fleur du Cap Best Actor.

Malcolm Purkey (The Girl in the Yellow Dress) and Marthinus Basson (As die Broek Pas / Man to Man) are both nominees for the Fleur du Cap Best Director accolade. Antoinette Kellerman (Man to Man /As die Broek Pas) and James Cairns (Dirt / The Sitting Man) are both in the run for Best Performance in a One-Person Show.

The Girl in the Yellow Dress (Craig Higginson), London Road (Nicholas Spagnoletti) and The Sitting Man (James Cairns) are nominees for Best New SA Script. Christiaan Olwagen (Woza Andries) and Francesco Nassimbeni (Done Londen) are in the run for The Rosalie van der Gucht Prize for New Directors, and Craig Leo and Emile Starke (Womb Tide) are nominated for Best Design.

Productions that have been part of the 2010 Festival who are in the run for Naledi Awards are:

Songs of Migration: Nominated for Best Production of A Musical, Best New South African Play or Musical Produced, Best Performance in a Musical (Hugh Masekela and Sibongile Khumalo), Best Musical Director/Score/Arrangement (Ezbie Moilwa), Best Theatre Lighting Design (Wesley France), Best Costume Design (Noluthando Lobese) and Best Theatre Sound Design (Freddy Malesa).

Girl in the Yellow Dress: Nominated for Best Production of a Play, Best Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role (Play) – Nat Ramabulana, Best New South African Play or Musical Produced, Best Performance by an Actress in a Lead Role (Play) – Marianne Oldham, Best Director of a Play or Musical (Malcolm Purkey) and Best Theatre Set Design (Gary McCann).

Butcher Brothers, Quack and Wombtide are all in the run for Best Cutting-Edge Production. Wombtide is also nominated for Best Theatre Lighting Design (Rob Murray) and Best Theatre Set Design (Craig Leo & Emily Stark). Quack was also nominated for Best Costume Design (Leila Anderson).

Matthew Ribnick is nominated in the category Best Comedy Performance (Play, Musical or Revue) for his no-holds-barred approach to Geraldine Naidoo's new comedy Monkey Nuts that sold out at the 2010 Festival.

“Theatre awards are a vital part of growing an arts economy,” said Mahomed. “The awards help to profile high achieving artists to managements but they also assist the artists to constantly break their own glass ceilings. The National Arts Festival congratulates all the nominees and winners; and applauds both the Fleur de Cap and Naledi Theatre Awards for having the vision to give recognition to our country’s artistic leaders.“

The National Arts Festival is sponsored by Standard Bank, The Eastern Cape Government, The National Arts Council, The National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund, The Sunday Independent and M Net. The 2011 Festival will run from June 30 to July 10.

For more information, click on the National Arts Festival on this page which will take you to their highly informative website)