Klein Karoo Arts Festival reinvented
There’s also 11 exhibitions in a virtual gallery.
The Klein Karoo National Arts Festival’s usual format this year was replaced by innovations on other platforms, according to Hugo Theart, the festival’s artistic director of the festival.
“During difficult and uncertain times, the arts offer an escape, act as a voice for communities and bring people together to make a difference in their environment. “It is for this reason that the festival has been endeavouring to entertain audiences and support role players since March,” he said.
With the current restrictions, they had to think of new ways to offer quality art.
“The festival does not only create art for audiences once a year. It is our vision to create opportunities in the arts throughout the year, and we have succeeded in doing that thus far in 2020, entertaining festivalgoers on various platforms in the comfort of their own homes.”
A variety of initiatives have been created or adapted to ensure a diverse offering is still available across South Africa, and internationally for the first time this year.
Netwerk24 and the festival’s first short film project, Kortom, was launched early last month and showcases nine short films exclusively to Netwerk24 subscribers over nine weeks. The programme includes four comedies: Voetjie Voetjie written by Nico Scheepers; Kortpad written by Gaerin Hauptfleisch; Nappy
Blues written by Carla Smith and Stuur groete vir Fanie written by
Marelize Viljoen. There are three dramas: Markus en die son by Philip Rademeyer; ’n Dag vir ’n oomblik by Hilléthe Möller and Die dansengel by Vinette Ebrahim;, one thriller (Ter nagedagtenis, by Soné Rossouw) and a dance production conceptualised by the Figure of 8 Dance Collective, Vasgevang.
Expect to see Cintaine Schutte, Waldemar Schultz, Roeline Daneel, Theo Jantjies, Albert Pretorius, Richard September, Brendon Daniels, Wilhelm van der Walt, Gerben Kamper, Kevin Narain, Fiaz Dalman and many more.
Four films are already available to Netwerk24 subscribers with the other short films to be released weekly.
“We are creating an opportunity for playwrights to present new South African scripts and script ideas at Teksmark for the fifth consecutive year.
“This project was honoured with a special Fleur du Cap Award for innovation in theatre in 2018, and we look forward to creating an opportunity for all writers to present their ideas and scripts for possible further development,” Theart said.
A record number of entries were received for Teksmark this year and the evaluation process is currently under way. Participating scripts will be announced at the end of this month. Teksmark takes place from 27 to 29 October at the Baxter Theatre Complex in Cape Town.
Mothership Sessions is a music series recorded exclusively for the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival at Mothership Studios in Cape Town and streamed worldwide. This online series includes performances by Elandré, Emo Adams, Karen Zoid, Watershed, Anna Davel, Roan Ash and Elvis Blue.
The 12th Klein Karoo Klassique, Oudtshoorn’s winter festival of classical music, was replaced by two online music concert series. The first ran from August to September and the second is available online from the end of October. The latter consists of four performances in conjunction with the Cape Town Baroque Festival, supported by Rupert Music Foundation.
Another first for the festival is the virtual gallery. Dineke van der Walt, the curator, said there were 11 exhibitions and more than 200 works by 45 artists.