(Ladysmith
Black Mambazo)
Ladysmith Black Mambazo (KZN) are a South
African male choral group singing in the local vocal styles of isicathamiya and
mbube.
The South African State Theatre is proud to
announce that from May until December 2020, it will temporarily replace the
fourth wall with the computer screen by taking to various online platforms and
stream its productions to satisfy the many theatre lovers’ appetite during the
different COVID-19 lockdown levels. This is one of various plans and social
economic relief measures being rolled out by the theatre during these trying
times. The streaming will comprise unforgettable past productions that were
recorded live at State Theatre, and once the lockdown restrictions allow; will
also look to add new productions to the schedule.
The State Theatre’s Artistic Director, Aubrey
Sekhabi, is excited to bring South African theatre online. “Since 2014, we have
been experimenting with bringing theatre online and on television. This led to
my presentation at the African Union in Addis Ababa where I intended to invite
artists in the continent to be part of this initiative. With the lockdown, we
are presented with an opportunity to experiment on this format. We are ready to
launch, whilst providing relief for our artists to earn income. We also intend
to solidify the online platform as an alternative or secondary platform for our
artistic offering,“ he says.
We will be launching Africa Month
celebrations on May 24, 2020, with the streaming of never-seen-before
performance by the multi Grammy-Awards winning acapella group, Ladysmith Black
Mambazo; alongside the Guinness Record holder, Percy Maimela, Mamelodi-born
Ncamisa Nqana and rounded off with Luthando Arts Academy’s soul-stirring Amawethu.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo (KZN) are a South
African male choral group singing in the local vocal styles of isicathamiya and
mbube. They became known internationally after singing with Paul Simon on his
1986 album called Graceland, and have
won multiple awards, including five Grammy Awards, dedicating their fifth
Grammy to the late former President Nelson Mandela. Formed by the late
legendary Joseph Shabalala (MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE) in 1960, Ladysmith
Black Mambazo became one of South Africa's most prolific recording artists,
with their releases receiving gold and platinum disc honours. The group became
a mobile academy of South African cultural heritage through their African
indigenous isicathamiya music.
Percy Maimela (MP) who holds the Guinness
World Record for producing the largest artwork using coffee granules is a
35-year-old self-taught visual artist and one of the stars to come out of the
SAST’s Incubator Programme. In 2018, he was selected to be part of the State
Theatre’s Incubator Programme where he was given support and training for the
mainstream arts space. After he claimed the record, Maimela was invited to
exhibit again at SAST’s annual Mzansi Fela Festival in 2019. After exiting the
programme, he continues exhibiting on some of the world’s big stages.
The launch bill proudly includes Pretoria’s
own Ncamisa Nqana who is a jazz composer and vocalist from Mamelodi, east of
Pretoria. In 2018, she was profiled in the State Theatre’s Incubator Programme
where she launched her single called A
Bird With Melodies which is a jazz performance that includes spoken word,
dance and poetry.
Another production that will be featured
during Africa Month is the dance piece known as Amawethu, which was conceived, choreographed, and directed by
award-winning dancer and choreographer Luyanda Sidiya (2015 Standard Bank Young
Artist for Dance), assisted by Phumlani Nyanga (Vaal, GP). The production is a
presentation offered in collaboration with Luthando Arts Academy. It was
recorded live at SAST in July last year after it returned from being featured
in the Main Programme of the 2019th National Arts festival in Makhanda.
Amawethu tells a human story that seeks to reclaim who we are as a people
from our cultures and customs and corrects the distortions that pre-date the
African slave trade that led many to believe that African spirituality had a
demonic, pagan, uncivilized, barbaric and godless origin. The work features
dancers, Tholakele Nkala, Steven Chauke, Phumlani Mndebele, Xolisile Bongwana,
Julia Burnham, Kwazi Madlala, Thulisile Binda, and Sibonele Mchunu.
Sidiya comments on the motive behind the
work: "Amawethu aims to create a
system for the black child to appreciate and learn more about who he or she is.
We seek to enact the wealth of character long lost in our customs and our way
of life. I have a great fascination with the beauty of who and what we are. I
am also inspired by people who came before me."
Through our ongoing proactive approach in
dealing with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on our industry, the Theatre
found this an opportune time to launch our digital platform. This is in
addition to May being designated Africa Month which is perfectly aligned to our
vision of being “The Theatre of Africa”. As we establish and grow our digital
platform, we will reach audiences across Africa and the rest of the world. This
presents our artists with significantly greater earning opportunities when our
productions are watched by paying audiences.
As we navigate the possibilities and
opportunities of live recording without audiences, we cannot wait to share with
you, our envisioned live concerts anchored by seasoned South African artists as
well as offerings from Mmapula Setlhako and Hanna Van Tonder. In the same
breath, we hope to be able to cover the set works so that we partner with the
learners and the Department of Basic Education to bring these to them, in order
to mitigate the interrupted learning process.
As we launch our digital platform to
continue bringing you the very best in South African performing arts, we are
eager and look-forward to seeing you in our theatres again very soon.
A full schedule with broadcast dates and
times will be released in the coming days on our social media networks. Follow on
Facebook, Twitter & Instagram and also subscribe to the You Tube channel to
get alerts when content is uploaded.
All content will be loaded on the South
African State Theatre’s YouTube channel which can be found below.
Facebook: South African State Theatre
Twitter: @SAST_PR
Instagram: SAStatetheatre
Channel: YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgyEcxGJaQ2376NJ_6aqH7A
Web site: http://www.statetheatre.co.za
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