After the organisers of the Kayamandi Arts and Cultural Festival’s (KACF) annual poetry evening failed to ensure that performers adhered to the evening’s intended theme, some audience members were left disgruntled.
The event was held at the Stellenbosch University (SU) Museum on 26 October, and promised to explore the role of men in broader society through a forum discussion. Instead, the evening was fraught with challenges, some of which included performers arriving more than an hour late and failing to engage with the event’s planned topic of discussion.
Some interesting facts about the Kayamandi Arts & Cultural Festival (KACF). INFOGRAPHIC: Judy Philander
“I was really looking forward to the discussion. I believe that exploring the role of a man in the 21st century is extremely necessary, especially given the nature of the world we live in where gender-based violence that is often perpetrated by men, continues to plague our communities,” said Imkhitha Nzungu (23), a Masters student at the Department of Ancient Studies.
“I’m disappointed that the evening didn’t go as planned,” she added.
The evening’s host, Tandekile Gqabaza (26), had to apologise profusely to the restless crowd who had been waiting for more than an hour for proceedings to start.
Usisipho Ngxubaza (18), an audience member who was asked to perform during the open mic portion of the event, said that she was surprised when she was asked to perform.
Usisipho Ngxubaza (18) performs a cover of the popular Adele song, “Make you feel my love”. PHOTO: Judy Philander
“I just came here to support the scheduled performers and enjoy the evening’s discussion,” she added.
Olwethu Pakisa (20) shared a similar sentiment when she was asked to perform a spoken word poem. Despite being caught off guard, Pakisa managed to captivate the audience during her evocative performance.
Olwethu Pakisa (20) has performed at various arts and cultural events and is known for her provocative poetry. PHOTO: Judy Philander
“It’s imperative that we talk about men and their role in society, particularly in communities such as Kayamandi. Our community faces a number of challenges and we need men to step up and work with us in order to see visible changes take place,” Pakisa noted.
“I was hoping we would come up with solutions tonight but that unfortunately didn’t happen, as it seems like performers and speakers were unaware of tonight’s discussion theme,” she added.
- Stanley Mandlenkosi Sitonga (30), has been performing his spoken word poetry at the Kayamandi Arts & Cultural Festival (KACF) since its inception in 2013. Sitonga believes that spoken word poetry has the power to heal the hearts and minds of young people. PHOTO: Judy Philander
While some of the younger audience members seemed unperturbed by the evening’s spontaneity as they snapped and cheered during a few of the impromptu performances, others such as Ngxubaza, however, were not impressed.
“The event could’ve been planned better that’s for sure, but hopefully they’ll get it right next year.”
WATCH: KACF’s final event for the year, boasted a variety of performances including spoken word poetry and singing. VIDEO: Judy Philander