Did you miss the deadline for the call for proposals for the Main programme for 2016 or maybe you considered entering but just never got your proposal together? Here is your chance, The National Arts Festival has extended the deadline for calls for the 2016 Main programme until Friday, 11 September 2015. Artists, companies and presenters can download a proposal brief from the Festival’s website. Proposals must reach the Artistic Director no later than Friday 11 September 2015. All proposals … [Read more...] about Deadline extended for National Arts Festival 2016 proposals
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2015 Arts Journalist Awards deadline extended
Did the deadline for the Arts Journalist Awards pass you by? Maybe you were hesitant to submit your work because you write in a language other than English? Well, if you are an arts writer, broadcaster or photographer in traditional media or publishing online, you have been given a reprieve. We have judges on the panel to judge all languages, and the deadline for entries has been extended to Friday, 11 September 2015. The National Arts Festival and Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) are … [Read more...] about 2015 Arts Journalist Awards deadline extended
2015 National Arts Festival tickets go on sale soon
Bookings open on Monday, 4 May for South Africa’s premier arts festival, which runs from 2 to 12 July in Grahamstown. Aiming to satisfy, provoke and thrill both the discerning and the curious, this year's National Arts Festival line-up showcases the best of what South Africa's artists have to offer, as well as an unmissable selection of international acts. Bookings for the Festival – which runs from 2 to 12 July in Grahamstown – open on Monday, 4 May. "The 2015 programme at the National … [Read more...] about 2015 National Arts Festival tickets go on sale soon
Zwide born musician amongst 2015 Standard Bank Young Artists
The National Arts Festival last night announced six young South Africans as winners of the prestigious Standard Bank Young Artist Award. This marks the start of a new decade building on Standard Bank’s 30 years of sponsoring the Awards which was celebrated in Grahamstown this year. The number of winners who have received this accolade since 1984 now tallies up to 137. The Award is made annually to young South African artists who are either on the threshold of national acclaim, or whose … [Read more...] about Zwide born musician amongst 2015 Standard Bank Young Artists
Calls to submit your National Arts Festival 2015 proposals
After celebrating, in 2014, four decades of superb programming, vibrant creativity, courageous experimentation, dynamic international collaborations and a passion for celebrating excellence, the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown is calling for proposals for the 2015 Main programme. The Festival will run from Thursday 2 July to Sunday 12 July 2015. “We are looking for compelling performances, exhibitions and cross-disciplinary works that raise the bar of excellence and innovation; proposals … [Read more...] about Calls to submit your National Arts Festival 2015 proposals
The National Arts Festival Stats Celebrate 40 years of Artistry
Street parades, a birthday celebration, a dazzling array of international performers from over 40 countries, and over 2800 performances in eleven days all contributed to a record 225 538 attendees at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown this year. Releasing attendance figures this morning, Festival CEO Tony Lankester paid tribute to the artists whose work “filled our stages and the hearts of our audience” during the annual event. “This was a special year for us for a variety of reasons, … [Read more...] about The National Arts Festival Stats Celebrate 40 years of Artistry
The National Arts Festival Reports Positive Half Way Results
Despite the icy weather, South Africans are continuing to support the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown in their numbers, according to organisers who announced positive growth for the event at its mid-point this week. "At the half way point we were about 6% ahead of last year's figures in terms of actual tickets sold, and around 12% ahead in terms of the rand value of those tickets," Festival CEO Tony Lankester said. "With a massive weekend ahead of us, we're confident that we will see … [Read more...] about The National Arts Festival Reports Positive Half Way Results
Grahamstown Festival reveals tourism potential through Arts and Culture
Dear Editor The Grahamstown Festival reveals the abundant potential for job creation through arts and culture tourism in a declining economic environment. The Grahamstown Arts Festival is a beacon of hope to all aspiring artists who seek a foothold in South Africa's tourism economy and it is a working model that should be replicated across the country. In a portfolio committee meeting in Parliament today (4 July 2014), Minister Hanekom agreed with my comments that the Grahamstown … [Read more...] about Grahamstown Festival reveals tourism potential through Arts and Culture
Adelaide Tambo Award for Human Rights in the Arts
The role of the arts in transforming South Africa from an apartheid state to a constitutional democracy will be under the spotlight at this year’s National Arts Festival in Grahamstown. Over the years, the Fringe programme at the Festival has been an open access platform for artists who have engaged the arts for social and political advocacy. During the eighties’ State of Emergency in South Africa, the Fringe programme was volatile and the work represented the political tensions of the … [Read more...] about Adelaide Tambo Award for Human Rights in the Arts
Arts Journalism Awards – You gotta be in it to win it!
The National Arts Festival and Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) have announced the Silver Awards for this year’s Arts Journalism Awards. From this list of ‘finalists’, Gold Award winners, together with the overall ‘Arts Journalist of the Year’, will be announced in Grahamstown on 6 July 2014. “It is heartening to see that our arts journalists deliver quality work day after day even though some publications are cutting back on the amount of coverage they give the arts. This augers well … [Read more...] about Arts Journalism Awards – You gotta be in it to win it!
Look at the ways in which this torn country can be reconstructed in part through the rich threads of culture
Tracing heritage and legacies and looking back to our roots are themes that come up strongly on the programme at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown this year as 20 years of democracy in South Africa come into focus. In 1993 then-President Nelson Mandela called on the arts community to “look at the ways in which this torn country can be reconstructed in part through the rich threads of culture”. South Africa’s artists responded loud and clear – and the Festival this year reflects on the … [Read more...] about Look at the ways in which this torn country can be reconstructed in part through the rich threads of culture
Experience the world through the creative senses of the blind
Visitors to the 2014 National Arts Festival in Grahamstown will be able to experience the world through the senses of the blind in "The House that We Live In" exhibition hosted by the South African Library for the Blind (SALB). The exhibit will be on view at 1 Hemming Street just behind the SALB. Entrance is free. Visitors will be able to see paintings, carpets, baskets and photography by the blind and partially sighted. There will also be an exhibition of books by blind authors as part of … [Read more...] about Experience the world through the creative senses of the blind
The National Youth Jazz Festival
The Standard Bank Jazz Festival, Grahamstown 2014, incorporates a variety of disciplines into its programme. The Standard Bank National Youth Jazz Festival is a regular highlight at the festival and this year will be no different. It is just one part of the exciting programme which includes Mainstream, Blues/Funk/World Music, Afro Jazz, Modern Jazz, and the Standard Bank Jazz and Blues Café. Running alongside the Standard Bank Jazz Festival, Grahamstown, the National Youth Jazz Festival … [Read more...] about The National Youth Jazz Festival
Fringe Four Hundred or so …..
The Fringe at the National Arts Festival is always a vibrant, diverse collection of performances because participation is open to all and no selection criteria is enforced. As SA’s ‘most democratic Festival’, if you have the will and a way, you can apply to find yourself ‘on the Fringe’. This year there are more than 400 shows and exhibitions on the Fringe encompassing children’s theatre, film, music, comedy, drama, physical theatre, dance, cabaret, visual art, performance poetry and musical … [Read more...] about Fringe Four Hundred or so …..
Arts and Culture Trust supports projects at the National Arts Festival
Through the newly-restructured Professional Development Programme funded by Nedbank Arts Affinity, the Arts and Culture Trust (ACT) is proud to be supporting projects in their appearance at the National Arts Festival, which takes place 3 – 13 July 2014 in the Eastern Cape city of Grahamstown. Well Worn, Jungle and Seka Theatre Companies will present an outdoor physical theatre production in the Botanical Gardens. Directed by Kyla Davis, THE BAOBAB - a new, site-responsive African eco-play, … [Read more...] about Arts and Culture Trust supports projects at the National Arts Festival
