“This year's programme proves that Arts Alive is not just a highly anticipated fixture in Johannesburg and nationally but is fast becoming a defining global cultural festival that confirms our great city as the cultural hub of the continent and a real arts destination,” says City of Joburg director Steven Sack.
“For the City of Joburg, the emphasis really is on the word ‘Alive'because we have a brilliant programme that amply brings to life the rich cultural and aesthetic diversity that makes Joburg what it is - all in a way that can appeal to arts lovers outside the city, across the continent and around the world.”
The scene will be set on Thursday September 3rd when the 17th annual festival officially gets underway with an
invite-only opening night in Newtown's Mary Fitzgerald Square in the heart of the city. Hosted by the Executive Mayor Masondo, Joburg Arts Alive's opening event will feature a stunning mix of music - from a massed children's choir to the delights of a percussion and winds ensemble and a moving tribute to iconic singer *Dorothy
Masuku, one of Johannesburg's most treasured residents.
From there on in, the 2009 Joburg Arts Alive International Festival delivers an easily accessible and wide-ranging programme that covers a remarkable diversity of arts disciplines including theatre, poetry, festivals, visual arts, festivals within the festival, film, dance, and, of course, music.
Many of the festival's long-standing events remain as highlights in a dense programme of activities - including Jazz On The Lake which this year takes place on September 6th with a free family concert that gives Joburgers a six-hour treat of great music.
The line-up this year includes International artist from Senegal, Omar Pene and the legendary Le Super Diamano, together with Indian ‘Shared Histories' Susheela Raman and Sam Mills and Brazils, Spokfevro. Local line-up features Afro-roots artist Selaelo Selota who most recently captured the hearts of music fans with his record ‘Lapeng Laka'. He is joined by the legendary Tsepo Tshola as well as the riveting Standard Bank Young Artist Jazz Trio featuring the formidable talents of *Concord Nkabinde, Kesivan Naidoo and Mark Fransmann. Also in the mix is one of South Africa's most exciting hip-hop acts, Zulu Boy who will bring his traditional influenced hip hop - as featured on albums like the SA Music Award-nominated ‘Inqolobane' - to music fans. As our added feature of up-and-coming youth artists Jazz on the Lake will be featuring: Xolisa Dlamini and Tebogo Moloto.
Jazz on the Lake is just one of a dazzling spectrum of music shows in September that run the gamut from Freedom To Dance, a hip-hop and house extravaganza taking place at Carfax on September 4th to performances of Michael Masote ‘The South African Messiah'. A real coup for this year's Joburg Arts Alive is African Connections, producing unmissable events that bring a dazzling line-up of African and South African artists together for events that will give music fans a chance to experience just why Africa is considered the birthplace of modern music. Included in this lineup are Mingas (Mozambique), Dudu Manhenga (Zimbabwe), Tarika Be (Madagascar), the legendary Senegalese super group Xala, Etran Finatawa (Niger), Baponga (Gabon), and Gang of Instrumentals (South Africa). A partnership with the Austrian Embassy will also see a performance by Carlo Mombelli's ‘Prisoners of Strange'.
The African Connections music shows will be complemented by an African Connections Book event to be held at the Soweto Library in partnership with Xarra Books and the Alliance Francaise, which will host an opening night on September 24th. Featuring booksellers, readers and writers this forms part of Joburg Arts Alive's Visual Arts programme which this year is brimming with exceptional exhibitions, including a Braam Kruger retrospective at UJ Art Gallery from September 2nd to 23rd and innovative projects like the 1mile² Project. The latter is a three-year global arts programme that gets communities to map the biodiversity, cultural diversity and aesthetic diversity of their local neighbourhood, working in collaboration with an artist and an ecologist.
Alongside the Visual Arts element of the 2009 Joburg Arts Alive International Festival Programme is a Film Festival, which will also include workshops for writers and filmmakers in Soweto with the aim of providing an alternative platform for the development and exposure of Soweto's film talent.
Two of the strongest features of this year's Joburg Arts Alive are the theatre and dance components.
A feast of performance pieces will be featured on many of Johannesburg's stages, including ‘Jozi Ma Sweetie - Ode To Joburg' which runs from September 16th. As part of the Festival's intention to reach as many people as possible, a key component of the theatre programme is *Alternative Spaces*, a *Township Theatre Revival* which takes its cue from the godfather of Community Theatre, the late Gibson Kente who believed forcefully in the importance of theatre that can be rotated and performed in community halls and churches in townships.
For Dance fans there is also plenty to look forward to during September, starting with the South African Ballet Theatre'sproduction of the classic ‘Giselle' at the Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein. Several key items in the ‘Shared History': The Indian Experience in South Africa programme will also feature in Art's Alive dance segment including Indian Classical Dance from the Nrityagram Dance Ensemble ‘Shree'* plus Contemporary Dance by the Daksha Sheth Dance Company ‘Sarpagati'.
Poetry is also high on the agenda. An exciting addition to the programme is Poetry Slam which forms part of the African Connections series of events. Taking place at the Alliance Francaise and the Soweto Library from September 21st to 30th, the event sees Johannesburg join the Poetry Slam worldwide movement that now even includes an Olympiad in Paris! Other events under this banner are the fifth edition of the ‘Speak The Mind Sessions' which combines spoken word, beat poetry and organic music in a compelling mix.
A new feature of Joburg Arts Alive is the myriad of festivals within the festival that take place during September.
The SABC has embraced and endorsed the Joburg Arts Alive International festival and this year they have upped the ante with the partnership that will ensure audiences and fans are alike will be kept informed with the Arts alive happenings. Nisha Jones, SABC Sales Director and Acting Marketing Director says: “ The SABC is proud to, for the fifth consecutive year, be one of the partners of the 2009 Arts Alive International Festival. As a proudly South African brand, the SABC is committed to uplifting our beautiful Nation.
“Public Broadcasting is about citizen empowerment. But so is arts and culture. It pushes the boundaries of communication - as does the National Public Service Broadcaster. The SABC is a firm believer of mutually beneficial associations with aligned brands and initiatives such as Arts Alive, in a quest to fortify and celebrate our arts and culture”
These include the 969 Festival, ‘The Best of Grahamstown' hosted by the Humanities Department of Wits University *that features the best of the recent National Arts Festival. There is also the Fietas Festival which is a unique cultural festival held over three days in the exact location of the historically famous Vrededorp/Pageview community that was destroyed by the Group Areas Act under apartheid. And for those who want to combine being immersed in Joburg's cultural milieu with the shopping, the city is also famous for The Johannesburg Shopping festival. Finally the *Indian ‘Shared Histories' Festival* comes to Joburg during September and Thailand's Grand Festival (in partnership with the Royal Thai Embassy) is also part of the programme, providing a fascinating glimpse into Thailand's culture through cultural performances, arts and crafts and much more at the Zoo Lake on Saturday 12th & Sunday 13th September.
The 2009 Joburg Arts Alive International Festival is also partnering with two key events which further reinforce Johannesburg's standing as a world-class African city in the areas of culture and entertainment.
The 4th World Summit on Arts and Culture takes place from the 22nd to 25th September and is the first Summit to take place on the African continent. It will see arts and culture policy makers, funders and representatives of international, regional and national artist's networks make up the 400 delegates from over 70 countries across the world. In addition, the 2009 *Moshito Music Conference and Exhibition* takes over Museum Africa from September 2nd to the 5th, hosting delegates, exhibitors and live performances in the Newtown precinct in Africa's leading music industry event, a component of which will be Moshito & Arts Alive World Music Concert at Bassline on Saturday 5th September.
“I urge everyone to scrutinise the programme and make space in their diaries in September for some really brilliant arts events,” says Steven Sack
