Sowetan Reporter

Sowetan Reporter

Lovers of the arts will be chuffed to learn that the South African Theatre Initiative and Dance Indaba takes place at the Mmabana Arts and Culture Foundation in, Mafikeng, North West, on Saturday and Sunday.

There are opportunities out there for those in the creative arts. This was the message that emerged from the Free State Theatre and Dance Indaba held in Bloemfontein recently.

The third provincial indaba, which took place at the Sand du Plessis Theatre over the weekend of February 21 and 22, forms part of the national consultative process supported by the Department of Arts and Culture.

The department's chief director of cultural development, Tale Motsepe, emphasised that the creativity of South Africans should contribute to wealth creation and that innovative thinking was essential.

And Business and Arts South Africa chief executive officer Michelle Constant said: "The arts must start to understand the language of business."

During the indaba, representatives from the Performing Arts Council of the Free State responded to widespread concerns from delegates and undertook to engage more with the artistic community, while independent artist Thami Moleko and Free State Youth Arts Council representative Ernest Moikangoa spoke about the need for "total transformation" in the region's arts sector.

Also under discussion were issues such as unionisation in the performing arts, developing women through arts and culture, arts training and education, ensuring the preservation of traditional and marginal arts and dance forms, as well as funding and sustainability.

The Limpopo indaba will be held on March 28 and 29, while the KwaZulu-Natal event is scheduled for April 4 and 5.

Entrance to the indabas is free.