Invest in community arts centres for a bright future
EVERYONE in life will have one person who inspires them.
You become a role model in your society because of the great achievements and extraordinary things you have done.
South Africa also prides itself for producing world icons, great storytellers and some remarkable politicians. But we don t hear much
’ about people who lay the foundation, the people who made our icons who they are.
We care less about the creators of the product but rather fall in love with the product. Today I m looking
’ at a very important aspect of arts, which is the foundation of every aspect of arts we see every day.
Arts development is the future of our industry and without it we have no hope of a brighter future in the entertainment industry.
In KwaMashu township, in Durban, we have an arts centre called Ekhaya Multi Arts Centre founded by Edmund Mhlongo.
Besides following his dream of writing and directing theatre productions, Mhlongo established a multi purpose arts centre.
His contribution in arts development and to his community speaks volumes and earned him several awards and recognition.
Ekhaya Multi Arts Centre offers high quality training in music, theatre, dance and multimedia. It also offers high quality facilities, such as a recording studio, a fully resourced theatre, dance studio and multimedia editing suites.
All these facilities and services are available to young people who want to get proper training in different art forms for free. It s amazing to see that believing
’ in raw talent and taking it through the process of developing and exposing it to the industry can make such a huge contribution in building our industry.
There are many examples I can make of people who dedicated themselves to discovering and developing fresh talent.
Mbongeni Ngema [also] made an outstanding contribution in the arts, discovering many people who are now respected in the entertainment industry.
Gibson Kente is one such person, and so are Small Ndaba from Sibikwa Arts Centre in Benoni, Jerry Pooe from Wushwini Arts Centre [in Durban s outskirts] and
’ many others who deserve to be honoured for discovering and developing our artists.
Since Ekhaya was established in 2003 it has unearthed great talent in the community of KwaMashu and other Durban communities. Its artists have featured in international theatre productions like
Many others are actors gracing our screens in different TV drama series and movies.
Ngane Sikobi, now a respected music producer who revolutionised the sound of South African hip-hop music, is a product of Ekhaya. He also produced award-winning hiphop artists and KwaMashu homeboys, Zakwe and Duncan.
I have visited many community art centres in communities around South Africa. One thing in common is that they have outdone themselves. However, they all suffer from similar challenges of funding to sustain themselves and to continue to nurture talent.
It is my wish that the private sector and government invest in these institutions, instead of signing huge amounts of money on one day events which do not have sustainability in creating jobs.
I believe legends in the industry can also lend a helping hand in sharing their knowledge and skills.
Communities need to protect these institutions and also support events happening in these centres.
Community arts centres are the future of our entertainment industry; we can count on them to produce skilled artists.