Three divisions completed at eisteddfod
MBOMBELA - The Nelspruit Eisteddfod moved into its third division this week with learners’ and teachers’ hard work clearly visible, adjudicators said.
First up was Afrikaans voordrag en drama, followed by dance.
The English speech and drama division will conclude on August 20.
One of the adjudicators for English, Deborah Nel, said the eisteddfod is a wonderful opportunity for children to experience expressing themselves in front of an audience in a positive way.
“It is a positive experience for them. The adjudicators are very encouraging. They teach them, they help them, and they can feel wonderful.
“They end up being on stage, having this positive experience, and that goes in the memory bank. Next time you go and speak in front of an audience there is less fear.
“I am always so excited when a town has a festival of any sort to give children the opportunity to express themselves joyfully on a stage, and secondly to develop their confidence so stage fright is not something that happens to them.”
The head of the dance division, Tanya Edwards-Smith, said the division had
500 entries from studios and schools in Mpumalanga.
“The standard was a good level. The adjudicator, Nicole du Plessis from Gauteng, was a bit stricter as she wanted more clarity on the character of the various styles that the dancers performed, but was impressed with the level of dance in Mpumalanga.
“We had more than 20 different styles performed from classical, commercial and cultural dance styles.
“Our programme ran well and finished ahead of time most days. As 2022 Nelspruit Eisteddfod dance division director, I would like to thank our team for a smoothly run, successful week.”
Still to come at the eisteddfod is music instrumental starting on August 22, music vocal kicking off on August 29, and choirs on September 2.
Submissions of artworks for the visual arts and photography division took place from July 19 to 22 and can be collected on August 31.