For the 11th year running, a group of
thespians join forces to make their performance venue feel like ‘home’ for
themselves and their audiences, for the 11 days of the National Arts Festival
in Grahamstown from June 29 to July 9.
Twelve years ago, independent theatre
makers Rob Murray and Jacqueline Dommisse met after a very hard Grahamstown
that “had cost a lot of money and was very hard work”, and decided that there
had to be a better way to do it, and that the only way was together! Their
collaboration was the beginning of what is now known as ‘The Edge’ – a platform
on the National Arts Festival Fringe that showcases innovative independent work
and a collective spirit that is ‘a cut above the rest’. Hosted at the Princess
Alice Hall on African Street, the venue is transformed into a place where old
and new friends meet, and get something to eat or drink between shows.
Known previously as Cape Town Edge, the
line-up expands this year to include Johannesburg-based productions, and
encourage a sense of community between those artists based in different parts
of the country.
“We’re also pleased to have two new
hospitality partnerships on board this year,” explains Philip Rademeyer, 2017
Edge venue manager. “SAB has agreed to work with us in offering the kind of
welcoming front of house experience that theatre patrons have come to expect at
Princess Alice during the Festival, and we’re excited that local Makana
entrepreneur Mlindi Nhanha will be offering a choice of hearty home-cooked
meals at the venue!”
Wynne Bredenkamp, explains that theirs is a
collective marketing effort, as well: “The Festival hustle for audiences is
real, and sometimes it’s easier to talk to strangers on the street about
someone else’s show, rather than your own; and in the same way, it’s great to
have so many more people who can help to promote your show!” And yet, she’s
well aware that even with this additional support, “it’s not easy… it’s just
easier when you have support”.
To this end, the team co-ordinating The
Edge this year (Tara Notcutt, Philip Rademeyer, Wynne Bredenkamp) gratefully
acknowledge the support they’ve received from the Arts & Culture Trust and
Nedbank Arts Affinity, South African Breweries, and their Thundafund backers;
who have bought into their vision.
This year’s theatre line-up includes:
You
Suck (and Other Inescapable Truths) – daily at 10h00.
This hilarious and poignant show documents the misadventures of a Grade 9 girl,
Pretina de Jager, as she tries to become part of her school’s A group and
offers crucial high school survival advice.
The
Devil and Billy Markham – daily at 11h30. The
remarkable James Cairns recounts an epic tale of Faustian proportions as Billy
Markham decides to gamble with the devil.
Sillage – daily at 13h30: This production is a poignant and hard-hitting
story about a mother and daughter who get to know each other by packing up
their family home.
Undermined – daily at 15h00. Using comic book and African storytelling, this
production is told against the backdrop of urban Jozi and the deep of the
mines. It tells the true tale of Madlebe, an ordinary man with an extraordinary
gift, who came from Mozambique to find a job and take a better life home to his
father and wife-to-be.
Memorable
Moments with Stuart Lightbody – daily at 16h30. Internationally
award-winning illusionist, Stuart Lightbody, shares some of his favourite
pieces from his last seven one-man shows (and a couple of brand new ideas).
Oh
Baby, I’m a Wild One – daily at 18h30. A young
teacher arrives home from her sister’s wedding to an empty apartment, a bottle
of wine and a pack of cigarettes. She has a story to tell…
Cattle
Drive – daily at 20h00. This production deals with
the great cattle drives through the bush of Botswana, which were a coming of
age for young men, and is performed through a combination of movement, dance
and storytelling.
We
Didn’t Come to Hell for the Croissants – daily at
22h00. Jemma Kahn and her sidekick tell 7 stories based on the 7 deadly sins,
using a traditional Japanese form of storytelling, Kamishibai – stories which
will seduce the sinless and astonish the immoral!
For more information visit https://edgenaf.wixsite.com/theedgenaf
(To
link direct to the NAF site click on the large banner that runs across the top
of this blog
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