Minstrel, Malay choir competitions make comeback
AFTER a two-year absence due to Covid-19, the annual Minstrel competitions, Malay choir road marches and the historic Tweede Nuwe Jaar Minstrel Parade will return this summer.
Cape Town mayor Geordin HillLewis and mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith, along with Minstrel and Malay choir organisations announced the events were back on during a briefing yesterday, and that the City will be providing financial support, event services and waive the fee for the use of City facilities.
The first of the events, the Cape Malay Choir Board Choral competition, is taking place at the Good Hope Christian Centre in Ottery on Saturday, September 24.
The competitions will run until the end of October, culminating in the grand finale at the Athlone Stadium.
The Kaapse Klopse Karnival Association (KKKA) Minstrel competitions will take place throughout January, while the Tweede Nuwe Jaar Minstrel Parade (Cape Town Street Parade) will return to its traditional date of January 2.
Keep The Dream Choral competition will also be taking place in January and February.
To allow for stability and to ensure better planning of future events, the City said it intends to ask the council to approve new three-year agreements to fund the road march events until the 2024/25 financial year.
“Organising and hosting this event is complex and costly and the two-year standstill due to the Covid pandemic introduced further complexities such as funding challenges and supply chain issues – many businesses in the events industry have either closed or scaled down their operations.
“The intention by the City of Cape Town to commit to a new three-year financial support system illustrates their commitment to our culture. It will enable us to restart and grow this iconic event and in doing so, leverage its intrinsic socio-economic value for the benefit of all in the City,” said KKKA chairperson Muneeb Gambino.
Cape Malay Choir Board secretary Ismail Ely said their community been anticipating the return of the Malay choirs as well as the annual choral competitions.
“We acknowledge the difficulties our choirs face, restarting after a twoyear gap of inactivity but we move forward positively,” Ely added.
Keep the Dream Choir Board chairperson Mogamat Salih Davids said: “The board salutes the resumption of the festive season programme. We acknowledge that the pandemic has affected all of us, however, together we will revive and reach for excellence in practising our age-old traditions and culture.”
Hill-Lewis said these events represent the rich heritage of the City and mean much to thousands of Capetonians who have grown up with the culture associated with Minstrels and Malay choirs.
“We are really looking forward to working with the organisations to ensure we put on a massive celebration for their return and to ensure those who make a livelihood through these events can continue doing so,” said Hill-Lewis.