Celebration of poetry and inclusivity

Tuesday evening was warm and sultry in Grahamstown this week but it was hotter still inside NELM’s Eastern Star Education Centre in Anglo-African Street.

This is where a special celebratory performance of the local Cycle of Knowledge poetry and spoken word community group took place – and it was packed.

Established as a community engagement partnership between the Rhodes University English Department and members of the Joza-based Writers’ Movement, the Cycle of Knowledge has been meeting weekly throughout the year, alternating between campus and the Assumption Development Centre in Joza. Tuesday’s event marked their end of year performance, and it fully lived up to expectations.

A formal introduction and welcome by Dr Deborah Seddon of the Rhodes English Department was quickly and energetically followed by the dynamic voice of fellow organiser Andile Ecalpar Nayika, entering from behind the seated audience and setting the tone of forceful, vibrant performance that characterised much of the evening’s entertainment.

And it was indeed entertainment. What impressed me most was the variety and inclusiveness of the whole thing. More than a dozen poets – young and old(er), male and female, black and white – sat side by side in a semi-circle at the front waiting their turn, and it was all worth waiting for. A real sense of energy, of supportive affirmation of styles, voices, subjects and languages suffused the proceedings, and this was taken up in turn by an engaged, involved and appreciative audience.

Quietly reflective poetry stood alongside demonstrative physical performance. There were reminders of hardships suffered, both in the past and now; poems of political power and solidarity; poems of cultural affirmation; poems of pain, poems of love – and, beautifully, elegantly, there were songs and poetry set to music.

Then, once more from the back of the hall, came a deep and familiar voice as renowned South African poet and performance artist Mak Manaka made his way forward. Manaka, who has been teaching on the Rhodes creative writing Masters programme, will soon be returning to Johannesburg but his upbeat, outspoken urban style of spoken word and his linguistic dexterity fitted well the celebratory ‘vibe’ of this Cycle of Knowledge event. Needless to say, he went down a bomb with his audience.

An open mic opportunity was planned to conclude the evening but time ran out and, if it did indeed happen, this reviewer unfortunately needed to leave before it took place. A pity, because it would certainly have been fun to join in.

If you would like to know more about Cycle of Knowledge, take a look at their Facebook page – and ‘like’ it. Andile Ecalpar Nayika and Deborah Seddon are also there, and they will be happy, I know, to give you full details.