Mandela Bay Theatre Complex unpacks goals
● Training in the performing arts and infrastructure development among priorities, says general manager
It is all systems go for the recently declared Mandela Bay Theatre Complex, which has an array of goals to achieve under its new status.
Formerly the Port Elizabeth Opera House, the complex was declared a cultural institution by arts and culture minister Nathi Mthethwa in May.
This has made it eligible to be funded by the public sector.
General manager Monde Ngonyama said yesterday the institution had received millions of rand from the provincial department of sports, arts and culture, and from the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality through its standing contract with them.
The provincial department has provided funding of R13m for the complex in the 2021/2022 financial year while the municipality forked out R7.2m from its R10.8m threeyear agreement.
The municipal funding agreement was set for June 2018 to June 2021, but was put on hold amid political council squabbles in the metro’s coalition government which started in August 2018.
As a result of the delays, the then Opera House only received the first R3.6m earlylast year.
“It should be noted that the declaration to fund the [municipality] was signed into law through a Gazette on June 5 2021,” Ngonyama said.
“With the government’s financial year being AprilMarch, it means our funding equivalent to other declared performing arts institutions will only be effective in April next year.
“However, in recognition for the support for performing arts in the Eastern Cape, [sports, arts and culture] has agreed on what is called a transitional grant for 2021/2022.
“Therefore, [the department] for the year 2021/2022 is funding us with R13m.”
About R10m of the R13m would go towards programmes and R3m towards infrastructure, Ngonyama said.
He said the municipal funding would be used towards various projects including music development, touring ventures, the Isakhono Awards and the Stageworld Performing Arts School, under the Beyond The Stage umbrella.
Ngonyama said the institution would adopt the Stageworld Theatre as its subsidiary.
“Over the years we were partnering with Stageworld, providing it with a venue and a little bit of this and a bit of that.
“Once the Mandela Bay Theatre Complex was declared a national institution, it was encumbered with the responsibility to provide coherent development and effective training in the performing arts.
“We negotiated with Marlene [Stageworld owner Marlene Pieterse] to cede Stageworld to be our subsidiary that will enable us to respond appropriately towards human development.
“Now Stageworld is ours, as the Market Lab is to the Market Theatre,” he said.
Stageworld would be developed to respond specifically to dance and theatre as performing arts full-time, Ngonyama said.
He said the institution’s purpose was to produce works and provide employment to artists.
From the 2022/2023 financial year, the institution will make public calls for artists to submit proposals for projects to be performed at the Mandela Bay Theatre Complex, inclusive of the Stageworld Campus.