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Events Archive
Live Events
Africa Consortium Member's Events
Action Transport present:
What will Britain be like for young people when the oil runs out and food becomes scarce?
For this production - 13 young theatre makers are working alongside 5 writers,
a dramaturg (Kevin Dyer), a director (Nina Hajiyianni), a composer (Tom Moss),
a costume designer (Lois Maskell) and professional musicians (Sian Phillips and
Sarah Atter) and performer (Janys Chambers) in a devising and collective
playwriting process.
The result is Scratches in the Earth, an ambitious and brave new play that explores
how global issues may affect local young people in the future.
Action Transport Theatre is an idea’s led company particularly interested in experimental processes.
Booking essential!
Performance Dates & Times:
Thursday 24th July 2pm & 7pm
Friday 25th July 2pm & 7pm
Saturday 26th July 2pm
Whitby Park, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire – How to find us - http://www.actiontransporttheatre.co.uk/#more4
Box Office – 0151 357 2120 Ticket Price - £5 (£3) concession
Please be aware the performance will be an hour long and will take place in different locations around Whitby Park. The majority of the performance will be viewed from a standing position. Please come prepared with warm clothing and sensible footwear. For access needs please contact 0151 357 2120.
Supported by Shell (UK)
Waiting For Thandiwe - Black Curtain Theatre Movement
Black Curtain Theatre Movement, who have recently joined the Africa Consortium, will be at the Edinburgh Festival this summer with their successful show "Waiting For Thandiwe - A Romantic Comedy".
‘Waiting for Thandiwe” highlights a young man’s identity crisis upon his arrival in Cape Town, a bigger city to his hometown, King William’s Town. He falls in love with Thandiwe, a worldly and refined woman who doesn’t speak his home language! He is now back home for the varsity holidays and Thandiwe is making her way there for a visit. They have never interacted within the setting of his township and he is in a flat panic! He muses on how best to present himself & morphs in varied “alter-egos” in anticipation…
The Company will be at The Underbelly's Baby Belly 2. From 10 -24th August.
For more details about Black Curtain Theatre Movement see Africa Consortium Members page.
Woking Dance Festival presents
Diplomacy (An Installation Performance)
Saturday 12th July 2008 (12pm - 3pm) at the Lightbox, Woking, Surrey
Andreya Ouamba from Senegal returns to Woking to collaborate with UK-based Canadian Matthias Sperling to create an artistic dialogue across cultures inspired by the space and light of the contemporary architecture of The Lightbox.
This installation performance will be the culmination of a week’s residency working with southeast-based dance artists, exploring themes of dance as a universal language, whether each deancer has a special individual dialect or if there are conditions necessary to understand each other.
This commission is part of Woking Dance Festival’s Dance Dialogue programme, focusing on developing international relationships between African and UK-based artists.
Diplomacy is also part of the Woking Dance Festival’s Summer Shorts Season which takes place from 4 – 13 July and features a whole host of International artists performing at free events in Woking.
Summer Shorts is also part of Big Dance, a national event which “celebrates the popularity and diversity of dance – and the enjoyment of people dancing.” Woking Dance Festival is supported by Woking Borough Council and Arts Council England.
For more information go to http://www.wokingdancefestival.co.uk, T.+44 (0)1483 737830
or Email: info@wokingdancefestival.co.uk
Hall For Cornwall
Pop of the Tops celebrated in The Motown Show
This show is an evening crammed full of all your Motown favourites, with a large dosage of the UK hits of the Four Tops and The Temptations – Reach Out I'll Be There, Walk Away Renee, Bernadette, I Cant Help Myself, The Same Old Song, Going Loco in Acapulco, My Girl, Ain't Too Proud To Beg, Papa Was A Rollin' Stone, and Get Ready, to name but a few, plus hits from other famous artists of the era such as Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, The Isley Brothers, The Jacksons, Stevie Wonder, Edwin Starr, etc, etc.
And don't forget all that fancy footwork, the choreography of this show is something else!
The show starts at 8pm on Saturday, June 21, with tickets priced £17.50 and £15 plus an 85p Theatre Fund payment on each ticket sold. Contact the Box Office on 01872 262466 or click here for more information or to book online for The Motown Show.
The Osiligi Maasai Warrior Troupe
Fri 11th July, 7.30pm
They received tremendous receptions in two previous tours of England and Scotland where they performed before audiences varying in number from 100 to 7500, including appearances before The Prince of Wales and The Princess Royal.
Their natural rhythm and song is a sensation to watch and with enthrall and excite people of all ages. Their jumping, for which they are renowned, is something to behold! An unforgettable event – not to be missed!
Tickets: £12 Concessions: £8
Family Pack (minimum 2 children): £32
Theatre Royal Stratford East Presents:
Mad Blud - 15 Jul 08–16 Jul 08
The media is telling us that there is an epidemic of violence on our streets. What is certain is that young people are dying at the hands of other young people and every week there are reports of instances of gun and knife crime.
Writer/director Philip Osment has created ‘Mad Blud' with local emerging young performers for Theatre Royal Stratford East. Based on the personal testimony of local young people involved in the ‘epidemic', Mad Blud give us an authentic take on today's hottest news topic.
Followed by a post show discussion in which the audience can feedback to the creative team.
Stratford Circus 2: 15th and 16th July, 8pm
All tickets £4; group discount; 1 free in every 8 tickets booked.
Tickets are still available for the performance on July 15th at 8pm in Stratford Circus can be booked either online at http://www.stratfordeast.com/ or by calling 0208 534 0310
The Festival Of Emerging Artists hosted by the Theatre Royal Stratford East includes:
When Time Is Not - 19 Jul 08
The 2008 production from Project Phakama explores what happens when strangers collide and the courses of their lives are changed forever.
Project Phakama is committed to the practice of cultural exchange and the celebration of a shared experience by promoting a participant le and non-hierarchical srtistic philosophy.
Performed mainly in English.
I'm on a journey to get the bricks to build the rest of my life.
12 million people, 1 city, 300 languages, 1000 stories.
In a city that never sleeps a man gets into a taxi, a young girl visits a burial ground and a boy waits at an airport. In this city of strangers how do we stay connected?
For more information and to book tickets go to : theatreroyal@stratfordeast.com
For information about The Festival of Emerging Artists go to: www.ifea2008.com
SPEAK - 2 Jul 08–3 Jul 08
A Theatre Royal Stratford East's Young Actors Company production in association with LIFT
Speak is a devised show presented by our Young Actors' Company, based on their own experience and research, developed with guidance from poet Roger Robinson. Jamie Lee, former tough girl in her neighbourhood, struggles to make a new start while her old mates are involved on the fringes of crime.
Speak is packed with individual characters from bullyboy pimp to gospel church grandma, gang girl to council housing office clerk. Speak is a play made by people about the problems and issues that concern them: breaking out of a rut, dealing with peer pressure, coping with a baby and keeping the right side of the law.
Wednesday 2nd and Thursday 3rd July 8pm
Tickets: £6 (£4 concessions); group discount: 1 free ticket in every 10 tickets booked.
Age recommendation: 14+
The Hawth, Crawley
Toscha Comeaux - US Jazz Vocalist
July 3rd 2008
Charismatic US soul-jazz diva, Toscha Comeaux, tours the UK for the first time, debuting her new album, ‘This Could Be Love’, a collection of jazz, blues and soul tunes. Influenced by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Anita Baker, Toscha has shared the stage with high profile artists such as Ray Charles, Diana Ross and Lou Rawls. Backed by a swinging three-piece, Toscha’s sparkling stage presence supports a stunning voice that has earned her a loyal fan base in the States.
Tonight, expect familiar jazz standards-in the vein of Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Cole Porter and Gershwin along side originals from ‘This Could Be Love’.
The Soothsayers - World Music in the Marquee
Inspired by everything from township jazz, Afro-beat, reggae, highlife, dub and juju funk, Soothsayers are a seven-piece band combining rhythms from throughout the world with a live show renowned for their vibrancy and spontaneity.
Led by Idris Rahman (brother of acclaimed pianist Zoe) and trumpeter Robin Hopcraft, the line up features fat double bass, horns, guitars and African percussion in a real feelgood alfresco sound.
The Salisbury Festival 2008
This year’s Festival will have a major focus on African Work, featuring live performance, music and films.
Theatre:
Includes a unique opportunity to witness a traditional performance at Stonehenge and Danebury Hillfort by the Lions of Zululand and “Miracle in Rwanda” , an inspiring one-woman show based on the true story of genocide survivor Immaculée Ilibagiza
Music:
Features N'Faly Kouyaté with his own 7-piece group Dunyakan (The Voice of the World) in an evening of electrifying kora virtuosity,Tinariwen, a band from the Southern Sahara who, raised in conflict, have achieved legendary status - the kind of band that generations of western rebel rockers could only dream of being.
In Rainbow Choir hundreds of voices combine as Salisbury Community Choir and the Fezeka High School Choir from South Africa unite to fill Salisbury Cathedral with song.
Dance:
The Cape Dance Company with it’s imaginative choreography will seduce the audience with its raw, organic and ritualistic physicality.
Film
Featuring work from South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Senegal, Mali, Camaroon, Angola and Chad teh Festival will include Masai: The Rain Warriors, Son Of Man, Bunny Chow, The Wooden Camera, Black Girl, The Cart Driver, Yeelan(Brightness), Tsotsi, U-Carmen(E-Khayelitsa),Angola:SaudadesFrom the One Who Loves You, Darratt(Dry Season),
Visual Arts:
Exhibitions will feature the work of Traditional Tanzanian arts and crafts including carvings from the Makonde tribe at the Fisherton Mill Gallery and a stunning selection of images from some of the world's leading photographers portraying hope and joy in Africa in the Rejoice Exhibition
Literature:
Archbishop Desmond Tutu will talk to Emmy award-winning journalist Mark Austin who anchors the ITV News.
The 2008 closing concert
“Africa Rejoice” is set to be as memorable as ever as it celebrates the end of the 35th Festival with music from Zimbabwe,Egypt and South Africa, while the Festival Eucharist at Salisbury Cathedral will offer another chance for us to contemplate peace.
For more information visit the Festival website on:
http://www.salisburyfestival.co.uk/>
Non Member's Events
Dance! Africa Dance!
After the 6th Dance! Africa Dance! Biennale in Paris, the event is once again crossing the Mediterranean to African soil,Tunis... where it will take place from 1-8 May 2008 as part of Carthage Choreographic Encounters, organised by Ness el Fen, an association run by Syhem Belkhodja.This year, Tunis will see the introduction of a new section: Solo, which will enable the competition not only to showcase eight selected group pieces but also ten solos, created and interpreted by choreographers.
There will be two prize-winners in the Company category, and one in the Solo category. The winners will tour France and the rest of the world, beginning in May 2008. RFI, a partner in the event, will present a special award, the Prix RFI-Danse, to one of the companies taking part in the competition.
Also, the 2008 Tunisian edition will bring a new dimension to Encounters by focusing on the dialogue between the Maghreb, the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa. More than ten companies from the Arab world will be featured.
Encounters will also provide an opportunity to discover work by the first graduates from the new CMDC school created two years ago by Syhem Belkhodja for students from Africa and the Arab world.
www.culturesfrance.com
4th Jos Festival of Theatre 2008
Oval House Theatre - Moj of the Antarctic: An African Odyssey
Oval House Theatre, Mojisola Adebayo, and The Antarctic Collective are pleased to invite you to join us for a gala performance of "Moj of the Antarctic: An African Odyssey"
Friday 16th May, 2008 Drinks from 7pm, Performance 7.45pm
The performance at Oval House Theatre marks the last ever London dates for this Critics' Choice production, and also launches the Southern Africa tour of the show.
The performance at Oval House Theatre marks the last ever London dates for this Critics' Choice production, and also launches the Southern Africa tour of the show.
Produced by Oval House Theatre, in partnership with the British Council, Mojisola Adebayo will be taking her remarkable production to Malawi, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and South Africa - alongside a programme of artist development workshops and the forging of partnerships between Oval House Theatre and Southern African practitioners.
Do join us to celebrate this remarkable achievement.
The Production
In 1848 African-American slave Ellen Craft escaped to freedom by disguising herself as a white man. Moj extends this amazing story of race and gender cross-dressing into a flight of theatrical fantasy; she enlists as a sailor set for a snowbound wilderness and Moj becomes the first Black woman to step foot in Antarctica!
This innovative show uses performance, poetry, music and stunning original photography shot on location in Antarctica to offer us a radical view of both climate and change.
Oval House Theatre, 52-54 Kennington Oval London SE11 5SW
Nearest tube is OVAL (Northern Line, 1 min) or VAUXHALL (Victoria Line and BR, 15 min)
Access: Induction Loop. Flat ground-floor wheel chair access.
Car Park: for disabled visitors only, flat on-street parking after 6.30 (not in Congestion Charge area)
contact: Nazneen Nawaz at nazneen.nawaz@ovalhouse.com
Rooftop Promotions presents "Wedding Day"
Theatre In The park invites you to "Wedding Day"
DATES: 26 FEB to 08 MAR 2008
TIMES: 05.30pm AND 07.30pm
ENTRANCE: $ 10 000 000.00
Two shows per day – No Shows Sundays and Mondays
Theatre in the Park opens 2008 with a bag of laughs with Patrick Mahlasela’s play, Wedding Day. The play, which had a successful run during HIFA 2007, is set to officially open Theatre in the Park’s 2008 season.
Guaranteed to leave you in stitches, Wedding Day is a good start to the year, and promises to be a colourful event – as all weddings should be. Right? Wrong!
All attention is on Sabrina and Nelson (Played by Barbra Vhengedza and Dereck Nziyakwe) as they gracefully waltz down the aisle in a bid to alter their lives forever. Kindly assisted by a dear aunt and nurturing pastor (played by Pretty Xaba and Gordon Pakanengwa) who try very hard to ensure the wedding runs as smoothly as possible, its seems the duo are only a recipe for disaster, as everything they say and do ensures the bridal couple have a miserable day.
Promising to keep you keyed up through the play, Wedding Day takes you behind the scenes of what seem like perfect unions, and unveils some of the dirty secrets that most guest are completely unaware of.
Directing the play with an all-new cast is O’Brian Mudyiwenyama, well-known theatre and film practitioner. “It is an exciting challenge for me to be directing this play. This play is a Director’s dream as it gives an opportunity to experiment with various directing styles and techniques. I’m particularly keen to play around with props and lights, and can guarantee that audiences will be left laughing throughout”, says Mudyiwenyama.
This is Theatre in the Park’s opening production for the 2008 season, and runs from 27th February to 8 March 2008.
For more information, contact Teresa on Cell: 091 2 940163, Landline: 04 797 233 or email media@rooftop.co.zw
Our gratitude to HIFA and British Council for permission to stage this play.
Kalabash Senegal
Awareness through documentary films and music
Thursday 20th March
7pm - 2am
@ The Salmon and Compass
58 Penton Street, Angel, N1 9PZ
Entry: Donations at the door
FILM AND DISCUSSION
Upstairs 7.30pm FILM: African Underground: Democracy in Dakar Nomadic Wax / Sol productions. Democracy in Dakar explores the transformative role of Hip Hop on politics in Senegal, West Africa during the February 2007 presidential election campaign. Looking at the election through the eyes of hip hop artists around Dakar, the film mixes interviews, freestyle rapping, and commentary from journalists, artist and politicians. Senegalese society is seen on the brink of democratic change, where Hip Hop artists are one of the few groups who are unafraid of speaking out despite real attempts at intimidation. www.africanunderground.com
Upstairs 9.30pm: Q&A session and Audience film discussion with Magee McIlvaine, co-director / co-producer of Democracy in Dakar, and Omzo, Senegalese Hip Hop artist featured in the film.
LIVE MUSIC AND DJs
Downstairs 10.30pm: Live Performance from N’DEYE: Born in Guinea to a Senegalese mother and a Motown-loving father, N'DEYE always had the dream of becoming a performer. However, in a culture in which singing is reserved for the “Djeli”, a caste charged with entertaining nobility, she was expressly forbidden to even think of it as a possible career. Only once in New York did N’deye start to realise her destiny, singing backup for acts such as Razia Said & The African Funk Band, and then defining her style through her sensitive writing and a mix of Hip Hop and Pop under the wing of Isaac Mouguen Ndom. N’deye has since worked with Sekou Bembeya Diabate who features on her upcoming debut album ‘Les Maitres de la Parole’ (‘The Masters of Words’). The album is a tribute to those ‘Djeli’ whose traditions remind us of today's urban poets. www.ndeye.net
Downstairs 11.30pm-12.30am: From Cambridge's very own Calabash night guest DJ Africathy - spinning a tasty mix of African and Tropical tunes
Downstairs Bar ‘til 2am: Kalabash Movement Resident DJ Cal Jader aka Springfield alongside DJ Red Clay (components) laying down hot Afro-beats and grooves
Forthcoming events (and every 3rd Thursday of every month throughout the year)
Kalabash Angola 17th April // Kalabash Gambia 15th May // Kalabash Mozambique 19th June
Kalabash Movement is an organisation that seeks to promote awareness through film and music. Each event is designed to encourage recognition of the rich diversity between African Nations, to celebrate cultural heritage and explore socio-political situations. We aim to give a platform to Musicians and Independent film makers and encourage a wider audience to appreciate their works. Enquiries to: info@kalabashmovement.com
Critical Mass in collaboration with Children With Aids Charity present "Slumming It" at the Arts Theatre, London.
In order to fund ongoing arts work with Mums and Kids in the slums of Nairobi, and the ongoing Kenyan work of Children With Aids Charity, Critical Mass is having a fundraising event, Slumming It, at the Arts Theatre in the West End of London, on Sunday 27th April at 7.30pm. There will be a cabaret featuring Olivier Award winning trio Fascinating Aida’s first appearance in four years, supported by a crack team of comics and musicians, then DJs till late.
Normal tickets: £15 including one free drink after the show. VIP tickets: £25 also include a drinks reception before the show and a gift made by some of the artists we have been working with. It should be a terrific evening, and every penny raised goes directly to supporting young performing and media artists and HIV+ kids in Nairobi – none of it will go to administration or our fees.
Please come!!!
Booking opens on Monday via the Arts Theatre website
www.artstheatrelondon.com
We HAVE to get 100 bookings by the end of next week to secure the space so
please please book now!!!
Africalia Invitation - Belgium
Pictures of the movies Subira (Kenya) and Acquitted (Kenya)
Date
Thursday 17th of April 08
from 9 am till 5 pm
Location
The Secretariat of the ACP Group of States
451 Avenue Georges Henri
1200 Bruxelles
www.acp.int
Info
Reservation is mandatory
Meet Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Tuesday 8 April 5.40pm – 7.30pm
Bush House, Aldwych, London WC2
FREE admission - via ticket only
BBC Radio 4’s Bookclub programme is looking for readers to meet author
CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE
You’ll need to read 2007 ORANGE PRIZE WINNING book
“HALF OF A YELLOW SUN”– and you’ll need to come armed with questions and be willing to speak up in the discussion.
'This magnificent novel is a gripping portrayal of the horrors of war...A major new African voice.'
The Independent
We are recording this programme on Tuesday 8 April 5.40pm – 7.30pm
ADMISSION VIA TICKET ONLY - Apply via http://www.bbc.co.uk/bookclub or tel Dymphna on 0207 765 3189 or email: mailto:dymphna.flynn@bbc.co.uk
The Collective Group presents "A Journey Remembered"
By Nayesh Radia
The play follows the lives and struggles of a group of slaves
and indentured labourers during the late 1840’s in Africa –
only to understand the consequences felt by their
descendants 150 years later in modern day Britain.
The staged reading, directed by Vernon Douglas,
is to be held at:
Watermans Arts Centre, High Street, Brentford, TW8 8DS
on
Wednesday 19th March 2008, 7.30pm.
For further details please contact
Nayesh Radia – 07956 640 467
Vernon Douglas – 07988 699 143
email : thecollectivegroup1@gmail.com
Afrika Afrika! London
André Heller’s sensual discovery of Africa fascinates the audience with its tempo, energy and the zest of life that is oozing out of the tent. The troupe travelled through Africa for two years – between Mali and Morocco, and Egypt and South Africa, to all the coasts and the heart of the continent for more than 100 artists, eccentrics, dancers, singers and musicians who had that special something.
This circus theatre offers sensous pleasure to children and adults, workers and intellectuals. Unbelievable acrobatics, intoxicating rhythms and costumes of exceptional beauty will entrance you for more than two hours. The pole artists from the troupe “Hakuna Matata,” (Swahili for ‘no worries here’) will have you holding your breath as they elegantly swing back and forth on poles, nearly touching the top of the tent, while other dancers build a dizzingly high human pyramid. Body eccentrics bend and curve into proud snake-like formations: Feet become hands and hands become feet in a rare spectacle known only to the African tradition of cult-like mastery of bodily movements.
Afrika Afrika! runs through to March 2008, The Tented Palaces, O2 Arena, LondonFor more information visit the Africa Beyond website
Somali-Exiled Voices Fusions events: Young, Talented and Exiled
Wednesday 19th March at 7 pm
Oxford House, Derbyshire Street,
London E2
Comic Prince Abdi, Somalia and writer Bogdan Tiganov, Romania feature in this showcase
Prince Abdi is the only Somali comic working in the UK. He is a relative newcomer who has the material and confidence of that of full time comic. He has performed at Jongleurs (Various), The Comedy Store (London), Banana Cabaret Belfast Empire (N. Ireland) Up-the-creek Headliners Hackney Empire Broadway Theatre Hounslow Theatre The Glee (Birmingham) Edinburgh Festival (2007) Alexander Palace Trafalgar Square (Eid in the square) Rise Festival
http://www.exiledwriters.co.uk/
MARILYN AND ELLA
A new musical drama by Bonnie Greer
“Marilyn and Ella” is a new musical drama by Bonnie Greer, playing at The Theatre Royal Stratford East from 27th Feb.08 to 15th Mar.08
'She was ahead of her time and she didn't even know it' Ella Fitzgerald on Marilyn Monroe
'Everybody knows you don't mess with a victim” Marilyn Monroe on Marilyn
These two iconic women - both outsiders - come together in an evening of raw emotion and great songs. A true but forgotten moment of American showbiz history re-enacted live on stage.
Driven by ambition, frustrated by prejudice, united in friendship.
Marilyn and Ella is a new play by playwright Bonnie Greer. Directed by Colin McFarlane with music and songs arranged and directed by Warren Wills.
It will delight you with unforgettable old standards like They Can't Take That Away From Me; Lady Is a Tramp; Someone To Watch Over Me; My Funny Valentine; Bewitched. Bothered and Bewildered; Every time We Say Goodbye; Just Two Little Girls From Little Rock; Baby, It's Cold Outside; The Man That Got Away and Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend and new songs by the award-winning Warren Wills.
For more information and to book your seats, visit:
Human Rights Watch International Film Festival
From 12-21st March, Human Rights Watch International Film Festival (HRWIFF) returns to six cinemas across London with a programme of 23 eye-opening and inspiring documentary and feature films that dig beneath the surface of stories from 19 countries.
Films showing include:
DARFUR NOW
Since early 2003, violence raging across Sudan’s western region of Darfur has claimed at least 200,000 lives and displaced 2.5 million people. In a fast-paced chronicle of the crisis as it unfolds in Darfur, filmmaker Ted Braun expertly follows six individuals—refugee camp leader Ahmed Mohammed Abakar; female rebel soldier Hejewa Adam; Academy Award-nominated actor/activist Don Cheadle; Luis Moreno-Ocampo, prosecutor of the International Criminal Court; Pablo Recalde, leader of the World Food Programme team in West Darfur; and Adam Sterling, a young activist in the United States—with different strategies and different stories as they tackle head-on the challenge of ending the crisis.
This moving story unveils the power of compassion and commitment from total strangers who, by demonstrating their belief in justice for people in every corner of the world, renew faith in the tenacity of the human heart.
14 March 2008, The Ritzy, London
16 March 2008, Institute of Contemporary Arts, London
IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA
In a poignant story of recovery and strength, Liberian journalist Siatta Scott Johnson documents the first year of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s presidency in her war-torn country, highlighting the battles and accomplishments of the first female president in Africa. The brutal, ruinous rule of Charles Taylor left Liberia a legacy of lost childhoods and looming unrest. President Sirleaf and her newly appointed advisors face a daunting task: to maintain the country’s momentary stability and restart development of a society long plagued by struggles and despair.
This is the story of a woman’s iron strength in tackling the challenges of a society desperate for recuperation, and the struggle that her female government members and even the filmmaker herself endure in their efforts to move their country forward.
16/17 March 2008, The Ritzy, London
18 March 2008, Greenwich Picturehouse, London
RAPE IN THE CONGO
Shot in the war zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), this extraordinary film sensitively yet unflinchingly brings to light the plight of women and girls caught in that country’s intractable conflicts. A survivor of rape herself, Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Lisa Jackson, travels through the DRC to understand what is happening and why.
The film features interviews with activists, peacekeepers, physicians, and even the indifferent rapists. But the most remarkable moments of the film come as survivors recount their personal stories—inspiring examples of resilience, resistance, courage and grace.
- Time: 6.30pm
- Tickets: £5/ £8.50
- Box Office: 0871 704 2065
- Address: Brixton Oval , London SW2 1JG
- Nearest station: Brixton
WAR/DANCE
For the past 20 years Uganda’s government has been at war in northern Uganda with a rebel force, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). In the war zone children are not only the victims of the rebels, they are the rebels. The LRA employs a chillingly effective process to fill its ranks—abducting children. Profoundly moving and beautifully lensed, War/Dance follows the historic journey of three children deeply affected by the conflict: Dominic, 14, an escaped child soldier; Rose, 13, a choir singer whose parents were murdered; and Nancy, 14, a dancer and sole provider for her three young siblings.
Amidst unimaginable violence and grief, these children carry with them the hopes and dreams of their school and the entire camp as they sing and dance, in protest and in celebration, on their way to the national competition. War/Dance will renew your faith in the power of the human spirit to soar, against unspeakable odds.
19 March 2008, Clapham Picturehouse, London
20 March 2008, The Ritzy, London
For more information on venues visit: www.bbc.co.uk/africabeyond/events/
Dee Dee Bridgewater: Red Earth, A Malian Journey
- Music
- 28 March 2008
- Barbican Centre
- London
One of the great voices of recent times, Dee Dee Bridgewater has created a breathtaking and innovative vision, retracing her African roots to Mail, and forging a natural, living blend of two deep cultures.
Whether singing with Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins or Ray Charles, or exploring the art of Billie Holiday, Dee Dee is one of the most distinctive jazz voices in recent times - and she has a profound sense of the music's traditions, taking them into a new world.
Red Earth has amassed a tremendous response since the recording was released last year - this is the first opportunity for UK audiences to experience its power as a live performance, combining leading artists from Mali - including Check Tidiane Seck and Baba Sissoko - with Dee Dee's own stellar jazz group.
‘A cracking album that unites great jazz singing with the Malian griot tradition. Neither fusion nor compromise but a happy meeting of African musicianship and Afro-American romanticism.’ The Guardian
- Time: 8.00pm
- Tickets: £15/ £20/ £25
- Box Office: 020 7638 8891
- Address: Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
- Nearest stations: Barbican
A South African Shebeen Session
- Music
- 14 March 2008
- Mau Mau
- London
Chillis Fly West, the FREE West Side global beat session at Portobello Road's peerlessly funky Mau Mau Bar, invites you to a nite of pure South African musical gold. With a live set from Zulu soul queen supreme Doreen Thobekile. Singer, dancer and sometime member of Transglobal Underground, Doreen will be rocking Mau Mau to its rafters with a hip-swayin', soul-shoutin' set of tunes from her acclaimed debut album London Zulu.
On the decks: Alex Stewart from the ever magical Flying Carpet sessions and Jamie Renton of the legendary Chilli Fried club nights will be firing out indestructible beats from South Africa and beyond: kwaito, sax jive, funk, reggae, Afrobeat and any other flavour that fills the floor.
- Time: 7.30pm - 12.00am
- Admission: free
- Information: 020 7229 8528
- Address: 265 Portobello Rd, London W11 1LR
- Nearest station: Ladbroke Grove
Charlie Dark's African Beats
A Culture Clash of African rhythms and digital beats.
DJ, Producer and Blacktronica founder Charlie Dark reconnects the dance rhythms of West coast Africa with the digital beats of his East London home. Joining forces with Paris based Nigerian percussionist Chief Udoh Essiet, broken beats champion Mark de Clive-Lowe, leading British jazz guitarist David Okumu, drummer Richard Olatunde and VJ Soopanatural, Charlie creates an audio-visual culture clash of talking drums, African beats and digital production techniques remixed live in front of an audience.
Music to nod your head and stamp your feet to!
Touring March 2008
To view the e-flyer - click here
TOWNSHIP STORIES
Township Stories by Paul Grootboom and Presley Chweneyagae, which has already taken the UK by storm, will be in Australia from 19th February through to 9th March.The show opens in Illawarra Performing Arts Centre in Wolongong before playing in Adelaide at the Royalty Theatre as part of the Adelaide Festival of Arts.
A nail-biting thriller set against the backdrop of life in a post-apartheid South African township. A schoolgirl flees her home only to find solace in the arms of a gangster who believes life’s ills can be solved with violence…
On the fringes of the township a serial killer is on the loose…
And amidst the chaos, the police investigation is always one step behind…
Directed by Paul Grootboom, the ‘Township Tarantino’, Township Stories is an unexpurgated take on life in South Africa today. Ironically underscored by a collage of vintage Louis Armstrong, Paul Simon, Tracy Chapman, Norah Jones and traditional music, Township Stories takes you on an emotional rollercoaster through the sordid underbelly of contemporary urban life.
"One of the most remarkable pieces of theatre to emerge from ost-apartheid South Africa. Extraordinary. Compelling." The Guardian
"A high-spirited and ferociously memorable show. Shakespeare would have recognised the place, not only for its horror and ity, but for its sheer vibrancy of life." The Scotsman
Afrika Afrika! London
André Heller’s sensual discovery of Africa fascinates the audience with its tempo, energy and the zest of life that is oozing out of the tent. The troupe travelled through Africa for two years – between Mali and Morocco, and Egypt and South Africa, to all the coasts and the heart of the continent for more than 100 artists, eccentrics, dancers, singers and musicians who had that special something.
This circus theatre offers sensous pleasure to children and adults, workers and intellectuals. Unbelievable acrobatics, intoxicating rhythms and costumes of exceptional beauty will entrance you for more than two hours. The pole artists from the troupe “Hakuna Matata,” (Swahili for ‘no worries here’) will have you holding your breath as they elegantly swing back and forth on poles, nearly touching the top of the tent, while other dancers build a dizzingly high human pyramid. Body eccentrics bend and curve into proud snake-like formations: Feet become hands and hands become feet in a rare spectacle known only to the African tradition of cult-like mastery of bodily movements.
Afrika Afrika! runs through to March 2008, The Tented Palaces, O2 Arena, LondonFor more information visit the Africa Beyond website
Last Chance to See African Soul Rebels
After three series of acclaimed concerts, the African Soul Rebels tour has raised its game further for 2008, uniting two legends and a young groundbreaker for 10 nights
One has fought prejudice all his life, one stood up to be counted when a corrupt government tried to run roughshod over its citizens, one is bringing traditional sounds to modern music. Together they promise one of the most exciting nights of this or any year.
A West African spectacular, the tour features Mali’s Salif Keita, perhaps the finest singer the continent has ever produced, Tony Allen, the man who put the beat in Nigeria’s Afrobeat, and Awadi, the latest hero of Senegal’s fertile rap scene.
- Sat 23 February De Montfort Hall, Leicester
- Sun 24 February Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool
- Mon 25 February Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
- Tues 26 February The Sage, Gateshead
For full details, please visit:
http://www.musicbeyondmainstream.co.uk/africansoulrebels/index.html
2008 Eclipse Production: Angel House
As part of the Arts Council England's Eclipse initiative, Birmingham Rep in association with West Yorkshire Playhouse and the New Wolsey Ipswich present Angel House, written by Roy Williams, whose recent work includes Sing Yer Heart Out For The Lads at the National Theatre.
Angel House is set in London in 1956, a city still healing the wounds of wartime bombing. The Vincent family are hoping for a better life as they are re-housed in the newly built Craven Court estate. but for brothers Frank and Stephen, growing up in a complex, multi-racial world will forge two very different destinies.
Angel House is set against the backdrop of some of the most defining moments in recent history. From Enoch Powell's 'Rivers of Blood' speech to the Iraq War, Roy Williams' compelling and poignant new play charts the lives and aspirations of the Vincent family as they live, breathe and feel the effects of multiculturalism in the UK over the last half-century.
20th - 23rd February 2008: Birmingham REP Roy Williams
South African musician, Njabulo Madlala
South African musician, Njabulo Madlala, is performing at St Georges Church Hanover Square in London on February 21st. This will be an evening song recital starting at 7:30 pm and ending around 8:30pm.
For directions, please go to www.stgeorgeshanoversquare.org/location.htm
This is a free event.
Translations Finale, Africa Centre
Featuring Byron Wallen in a special concert collaboration with Tom Diakite, Breis in collaboration with Dele Sosimi and Christina Oshunniyi and Dzifa Benson in collaboration with Zak Akhimien and Craig Dow.
Translations is a celebration of Africa and it's languages across art forms. Exciting collaborations bring together leading artists at London cultural venues, to showcase African influenced arts in the UK.
Friday 1st February 2008 at 8pm
For more information please visit the Africa Beyond website
Translations, Bernie Grant Arts Centre
featuring Breis, Dele Sosimi and Christina Oshunniyi
Translations is a celebration of Africa and it's languages across art forms. Exciting collaborations bring together leading artists at London cultural venues, to showcase African influenced arts in the UK.
Monday 28th January 2008 at 8pm
For more information see the Africa Beyond website
A Christmas Carol - Ikrismas Kherol, The Young Vic
The Young Vic's Christmas season this year has a distinctly South African flavour. it has joined forces with Isango Portobello Productions to launch a dynamic new Cape Town theatre company, and will present The Magic Flute Impempe Yomlingo and A Christmas Carol Ikrismas Kherol in repertoire from 20th November - 19th January 2008. Performed by an exuberant company of 30, The Magic Flute Impempe Yomlingo is a joyfully playful version of Mozart's opera re-imagined with marimbas and township percussion, while A Christmas Carol Ikrismas Kherol serves as a genre-busting musical adaptation of one of the most enduring of all ghost stories. Both pieces, directed by Mark Dornford-May - co-founder of Dimpho Di Kopane whose production of Yiimimangaliso The Mysteries was a huge West End success - are transposed into a township setting and encompass the various languages of the South African nation.
20th November - 19th January 2008
For more information, see the Young Vic website.
Film and Digital Media
"Son Of Man" directed by Mark Dornford-May
Following their award winning U-Carmen eKhayelitsha, Son Of Man is the latest collaboration between Mark Dornford-May, Pauline Malefane (Magic Flute) and dimpho di Kopane.
Details of the film can be found at www.sonofmanmovie.com
Screening of African documentary at Edinburgh Filmhouse: Escape from Luanda
Director: Phil Grabsky
Britain/Angola 2007, 72 minutes, Portuguese and English with English subtitles
In Luanda, one of the world's poorest and most dangerous places, three students from Angola's only music school work towards their end-of-year concert. The Music School houses some 80 students, most of them desperately poor. Many face disapproval and outright rejection from their families, who can't see a future in music. This film asks if, despite the ravages of 27 years of civil war, musical passion can overcome terrible hardships.
Award-winning filmmaker Phil Grabsky ("The Boy who Plays on the Buddhas of Bamiyan", also screening at Filmhouse this month) will be here after the 8.30pm screening on Wednesday 27 February for a Q&A.
Screening Information:
Matinees (before 5pm): £4.50 / £3.00
Evening screenings (after 5pm): £6.00 / £4.50
Booking hotline: 0131 228 2688
Images of Black Women Film Festival:
A festival of films focusing on women from African descent, taking place on selected dates in Feb and March. For further information, please see: http://www.imagesofblackwomen.com/
Women's Cinema from Tangiers to Tehran:
From Morocco in the west to Iran in the easth, a unique collection of women's cinema, by women and about women, is playing at five venues across London from 22 Feb to 1 March. For further information, please see: http://www.tangierstehranfilm.org/
Kalabash Uganda February 21st
Film 1: Uganda Rising Film 2: Invisible Children
Kalabash Senegal March 20th
Film: Democracy in Dakar
Workshops and Seminars
The Africa Consortium in association with the Independent Theatre Council is pleased to present
Touring into Africa
Wednesday 23 April 2008
4pm to 7pm (including drinks reception)
British Council, 10 Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BN
Have you ever thought about taking your work to Africa?
The Touring into Africa Seminar is an opportunity to get some practical advice and share your experiences. The seminar includes presentations from theatre professionals who have toured in various African countries such as Nigeria, Uganda, and South Africa. Touring Into Africa will be introduced by Venu Dhupa, Director of Arts at the British Council
This seminar will explore three central questions
Why tour into Africa? - Discover the opportunities
Who are the key players? - Get some useful contacts and build your networks
What would you need to think about?
Leave with practical tips to overcome the challenges
This seminar costs just £10 (+ VAT) or £5 (+ VAT) for Next Level Members
Free to members of the African Consortium
Places are limited so you are advised to register your interest by April 4th with:
Kemi Bamidele at the Independent Theatre Council
E: k.bamidele@itc-arts.org
T: 020 7089 6830
Kemi Bamidele, Africa Consortium c/o Independent Theatre Council
12 The Leathermarket, Weston Street, London SE1 3ER
Cheques should be made payable to AFRICA CONSORTIUM UK
Transitions - A Two-Day Conference Investigating Heritage through Dance
7th/8th March 2008
At the World Museum, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Taking dance as its focal point, this two day conference will explore and examine what heritage means addressing questions such as:
- What is the definition of heritage?
- Has the definition of heritage changed?
- Who cares?
- How can heritage be preserved or evolved?
- What does mixed heritage mean in relation to dance practice?
- How can dance address young people's heritage?
The conference will bring delegates together to share information and experience of heritage through debate, thought provoking lectures and inspiring dance performances.
There is a special Sampad rate that has been negotiated if you are interested in booking, please quote "Sampad" as a reference when making the booking. Early booking will entitle delegates to a ticket to the British premiere of
Akram Khan's new dance production: but hurry if you'd like to see this as tickets are going quickly!
Further information and a conference registration form can also be downloaded via the Chaturangan website: http://www.chaturangan.co.uk/
The conference is being managed by Aspire Trust. For all enquires concerning the conference timetable,marketing, booking arrangements, accommodation and travel please contact:
Nick Owen, Aspire Trust, The Oldershaw School, Valkyrie Road, Wallasey CH45 4RJ
Tel / Fax 0151 639 9231
EMAIL trans.aspire@btconnect.com