The National Arts Festival in full swing

AMONG some of the shows that veteran performer and artist at the festival since 1993, Ashraf Johaardien, recommends this year are:

The Alchemy of Words: A collaboration between South African and French artists which takes a look at the “enfant terrible” of French poetry Arthur Rimbaud (18541894). In the performance, a puppeteer, a filmmaker and a musician work together to capture the enigma of Rimbaud and what it means to be a pioneer.

The show combines animation, puppetry and live music inspired by the imagery of the poet’s works.

What Remains: Written by Nadia Davids and directed by Jay Pather, a performance that fuses text, dance and movement to tell the story of the unexpected uncovering of a slave burial ground in Cape Town and the archaeological dig that follows, in a city haunted by the memory of a dark past.

Johaardien says an unexpected connection across the theatre selection appears to be a fascination with bones; specifically how bones as a metaphor can speak to South Africa’s need to come to terms with its troubled history.

Neo Muyanga, the 2017 NAF Featured Artist:

For more than a decade he has been composing and analysing music that melds the sounds and traditions of indigenous African and Western music, with the quest for elegance being his overriding pursuit.

His performances include Solid(t)ary – a survey of the tradition of protest song in the global South and Works for Trio by the Neo Muyanga Trio with Andre Swartz, Peter Ndlala and guest artist Msaki working their way through some of the artist’s repertoire.

Sabamye noMendi, Centenary celebration: Conceptualised by Mandla Mbothwe, it’s a multimedia interpretation through song, dance, pictures and film of the sinking of the ship, the SS Mendi, off the Isle of Wight in 1917 in which 600 black South African troops drowned.

Abantu Bemendi: A collaboration between NAF and the Mendi Committee, supported by the UCT’s Centre for African Studies, is a multidisciplinary exhibition, also commemorating the sinking of the ship.

Recognising the role the people of the Mendi played in a broader struggle for land, human rights and dignity, the exhibition references the native Land Act of 1913 as a reason why the troops on board the ship left their homes in rural South Africa to contribute to the war effort.