• Launch of the World Theatre for Children Day Campaign in Vrygrond, South Africa: "Take a Child to the Theatre today."

NEWS

  • LAUNCH OF THE WORLD THEATRE FOR CHILDREN DAY CAMPAIGN IN VRYGROND, SOUTH AFRICA: "TAKE A CHILD TO THE THEATRE TODAY."

    Sunday, February 05, 2012

    Kamishibai workshops:
    The popular Japanese street art form of paper theatre is finding a new incarnation in the townships of South Africa. ASSITEJ SA is training theatre makers and visual artists in this storytelling form, which sees bicycles and little wooden theatre boxes, being used to create an immediate, transportable and very accessible art form for children. We hope to have Kamishibai tellers becoming a popular feature on the streets and also at festivals.

    Inspiring to Play:
    Through generous funding from the Swedish Arts Council, ASSITEJ Sweden and ASSITEJ South Africa are collaborating to develop the writing skills of 4 South African and 4 Swedish emerging theatre makers. The project is part of ASSITEJ SA's broader "Inspiring a generation" programme to mentor artists over the course of a year and give them access to international opportunities, and will see two week-long workshops taking place in the two respective countries with mentorship from South African and Swedish writer/theatre makers before and during the process of creation. The South African participants are Beren Belknap, Jon Keevy, Lindelwa Kisana and Francesco Nassimbeni, and the South African mentors include Bheki Mkwane, Karen Jeynes, and Janice Honeyman. The results will be presented at the Bibu festival in Sweden and at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown.

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