Curator Dr Lliane Loots says, “ This year’s JOMBA! is set against a backdrop of both local and global political renegotiations of what it means to be human, to belong, to have a home and to be a citizen of a country (and of a planet); against an occupied Gaza, a ravaged Ukraine, anti-foreigner right wing political movements in Europe, a South African government of national unity that is busy manoeuvring for power … JOMBA! begins to ask what is means to find our way home”. 

She continues, “As a critical dance festival, we have curated a series of artistic encounters that question ideas of home, belonging and citizenship. We have invited dance works that ask us to relook at home as not just a physical space, but as a metaphoric and poetic space where we are either seeking to return, or to leave. We honour dance makers who will be bringing beauty, humour, pathos and politics to our stages and hearts”.

To this end, JOMBA! and JOMBA! @ The Market Theatre is delighted to be honouring veteran South African dance maker Robyn Orlin as the 2024 JOMBA! Legacy Artist for her innovative, political and deeply interrogated dance and theatre work that spans over four decades of dance making in South Africa and internationally. JOMBA! celebrates Robyn Orlin for her vision and practice, her wit, humour and insight, and for significantly contributing to our countries rich critical contemporary dance history and legacy.

Now living in Berlin, Orlin presents we wear our wheels with pride and slap your streets with color … we said ‘bonjour’ to satan in 1820 … – a work made with Johannesburg based MOVING INTO DANCE. It is a deeply personal work that emanates from one of Robyn’s childhood memories visiting Durban. These were the Zulu rickshaws whose “pushers” (or rather pullers), with their elastic stride, seemed to dance with their bodies suspended in the air. In a visually arresting dance work that honours the visual beauty of these rickshaws, Orlin also reminds us, as she says, “of a dirty history deeply buried in the political collective unconscious reminding audiences of facets of the Zulu rickshaws, considering their origins, inseparable from the time of colonization”. In the way that only Orlin can, she delves into the Rickshaw driver’s mischievous appropriation, sublimation, irony and self-deprecation, as she celebrates the Rickshaw driver’s refusal to concede their dignity to colonial and apartheid forces.

With support from the Indian Consulate (Durban and Johannesburg), ICCR, and the Swami Vivekananda Centre (Durban) JOMBA! and JOMBA! @ The Market is delighted to continue its South-South partnerships by welcoming Bangalore based dancer and choreographer Deepak Kurki Shivaswamy. With distant roots in classical Indian dance forms, Deepak Shivaswamy is firmly embedded in contemporary dance making and a search for finding ways to express modern Indian identities – and all the cognate ideas of home that this entails. He presents a double bill titled Vasudaiva Kutumbakam. He says, “this is a concept that the world is one family. This theme inspires our performances here at JOMBA! through the universal language of dance”. His first work Weight of Time invites audiences to question the traditional idea of art having a purpose. Instead, it encourages you to be present and enjoy the performance for the sake of the experience. The second work, Mycelium Maatu looks at the mycelium a network of fungal threads that organise themselves naturally into a beautiful, open-ended structure that supports and connects each other. This offers a profound provocation to Shivaswamy’s dance making.

JOMBA! 2024 also launches an innovative joint annual dance commission by the CCA JOMBA! and the Market Theatre with the express purpose of supporting and making space for innovative and provocative South African dance makers. Titled the PHAKAMISA Dance Commission – with reference to the isiZulu idea of lifting up and holding – this commission is an ongoing commitment to the illustrious JOMBA! and Market Theatre partnership (started in 2023) to grow and support South African dance. The Artistic Director of the Market Theatre, Greg Homann, shares, “We are delighted, at a difficult intersection of global histories to support the work and vision of Cape Town based Yaseen Manuel. His unique access of his own Muslim South African history with the intersection of both personal and political dance storytelling, makes him an exceptional voice in dance.”

Yaseen Manual presents Madha Kan which is a deeply personal journey that interrogates the current events unfolding in Palestine; capturing not only the harsh realities but also the deep compassion and kindness of its citizens. Initially a solo endeavor, Madha Kan is now evolving into a new ensemble work for JOMBA! and will be premiered nationally for its first time at JOMBA! Manual will stay on at Market Theatre for a further week of performances after JOMBA! as part of his PHKAMISA Dance Commission.

As the fourth offering and carefully negotiating the festival’s provocations, JOMBA! @ The Market welcomes Cape Town’s powerhouse company JAZZART. JAZZART offer a specially curated evening titled RESILIENCE and serves as a poignant exploration of the strength, flexibility, and enduring adaptability of the South African spirit. Featuring three captivating works; I am African choreographed by Jazzart’s Head of Training, Sifiso Kweyama, Battlefield choreographed by ex-Jazzart Company Dancer, Lihle Mfene, and Dark Flock crafted by the award-winning duo MANACAN. This triple bill is a powerful programme and will captivate audiences with the sheer mastery that is JAZZART.

The SAHAs have the following categories:

Youth Empowerment – uplifting young people through various programmes,
Business Empowerment – helping start-ups/small businesses to help them succeed,
Specialized Care – people who take care of vulnerable groups like orphans, disabled persons, abused people, widows, homeless, etc.,
Community Service – voluntary community work in different NGOs to benefit fellow community members, e.g., community policing forums,
Community Health – health centres initiated and run by community members as well as primary health care,
Rural Development – projects that uplift rural communities,
Women Empowerment – programmes meant for the upliftment and empowerment of women
Community Journalist of the year – submitted with at least 4 community uplifting/building stories.
Community Media of the Year – Telling community empowering stories.
Community Builder of the Year – voted for by fellow nominees in recognition of their outstanding work.

Honorary Awards:

Green Award – honours people who run projects/programmes for environmental preservation.
Ubuntu Award – honours veteran community builders whose projects have produced other noticeable community builders and high achievers.
Art of Giving – honours those who are uplifting communities through art.
Language Preservation Award – honours those who take pride in preserving indigenous languages.
Leader of Influence – honours exceptional leaders who lead by example and have a trail of positive influence.
Rights Activist of the Year – gives honour to those who fight tirelessly for human rights.
Aid Giver of the Year – honours exceptional first responders in times of disaster & distress.
Iconic Impact – honours an icon who has lived and continues to live their lives giving of themselves to others to ensure they succeed in life.
Excellence in Public Service – honours those in public service who deliver with excellence and go beyond the call of duty.
International Achiever – represents South Africa with pride abroad, changing and impacting lives.

The accolades over the years have honoured its script, direction, and outstanding performance. Drawing inspiration from the irrational fear evoked by the Parktown Prawn, The Ugly Noo Noo delves into how fear is manipulated in times of struggle and difficulty, while also addressing universal human truths. Its relevance and humour endure, making its main theme of irrational fear as compelling today as it was in 1988.

This return of the work to The Market celebrates the remarkable contribution of this pioneering piece to South African Theatre. Artistic Director of the Market Theatre, Greg Homann, says, “It’s a privilege for us at The Market to be able to welcome this play home, retaining Andrew Buckland in the role alongside the works relevance to our current world of fear and uncertainty.” Homann adds, “This season provides an opportunity for an audience who know the work to relive its brilliance, while giving a new audience a chance to witness the unique skills and stage presence of this elder of South African Theatre.”

The fact that the The Ugly Noo Noo is still being played today is a testament to the extraordinary nature of the show and its creators, affirming that more than three decades later, this is theatre that remains as enthralling and funny as ever.

Don’t miss the opportunity to see Andrew Buckland in his seminal role at The Market Theatre from 15 August to 1 September 2024. Bookings are open via Webtickets.

ENDS

For media enquiries please contact Lusanda Zokufa (Brand and Communication Manager at the Market Theatre Foundation) at lusandaz@marketheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641 or 072 367 7867.

For reduced price block bookings (of 10 or more) and school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development) at AnthonyE@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950 or Mamello Khomongoe mamellok@markettheatre.co.za 0815729612

Prayers, this year’s winner of the Market Theatre’s annual Zwakala Festival, will enjoy a two-week run starting from 25 September 2024 in the Barney Simon Theatre.

Prayers is an edgy play written and directed by Solly Ramatswi that tells the story of a young man who is forced to self-reflect amid the expectations of society on the youth. He is conflicted between conforming to the socialisation of boys and fighting his unbridled sexual urges. The crux of the brave and bold play is the navigation of this maze. The inciting question that the play grapples with is, “Can one find light from within, even in the darkest corners of the soul?”

The staging of Prayers in the Barney Simon Theatre, named after the founder and first artistic director of the Market Theatre, bears profound symbolism. Barney Simon was a champion of creating opportunities for community-based theatre-makers to showcase their works on big stages. His mode of enabling the stories of ordinary South Africans resonates with the spirit of the Zwakala Festival, a platform on which Prayers was discovered in January this year.

Writer and director, Solly Ramatswi, gives the play its purposeful direction, which leaves the audience empathising with the dilemma faced by the protagonist, portrayed by Vusi Nkwenkwezi. The Limpopo-born Ramatswi shares that his storytelling techniques are inspired by his grandmother. His theatre-making approach is to incorporate imagery, music and movement.

Ramatswi has won several poetry slam championships and has used sign language in poetry performances to raise awareness about disability.

As a Zwakala Festival winner, Prayers went through further development and mentorship in preparation for its two-week run, guided by award-winning playwright, J. Bobs Tshabalala. Tshabalala will be familiar to audiences as he is the writer of Poet-O-Type and Khongolose Khommanding Khommissars, both of which have enjoyed successful seasons recently at The Market Theatre. He has scooped the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Theatre, a Naledi Theatre Award and other recognitions. He worked alongside Ramatswi to further sharpen the script and direction in preparation for the play’s upcoming run. 

The star of the show is Mpumalanga-born and Gauteng-raised Vusi Nkwenkwezi, who won the Most Outstanding Performance Award at this year’s Zwakala Festival. Nkwenkwezi is an award-winning actor, creative director, mentor, teacher and director of SHRAC 11 Community Development. He will be recognised by TV viewers for his role in the KFC commercial, “Streetwise Bozza”, as a too-timing gang honcho. He is also an alumnus of the Market Theatre Lab, where he completed his drama studies in 2017.

Come immerse yourself in this captivating and relatable play that shines the light on a young man’s path to self-identity in the jungle of contradictions and expectations. Tickets for the show range from R100 as part of the Market Theatre’s half-price special on a Wednesday to R200, with bookings of 4 or more at only R120 via Webtickets.

ENDS

For enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at the Market Theatre Foundation) at bongim@marketheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

For reduced price block bookings (of 10 or more) and school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development) at AnthonyE@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950 or Mamello Khomongoe mamellok@markettheatre.co.za 0815729612.