Samanthole Arts Foundation

The stage is designed in such that the feeling you get as an audience member is that of two sides of the world, say an office station in Sophiatown, South Africa and the other in Harlem, United States of America. This is precisely because Bloke (William Bloke Modisane) was a South African writer, journalist and actor born in 1923 and his American Bantu (Langston Hughes) was an American writer, poet, playwright, novelist, social activist and columnist born in 1901.   Josias Dos Moleele as Langston Hughes and Anele Nene as Bloke William Modisane. Pic Supplied Bloke & His American Bantu is two-hander written by Siphiwo Mahala, produced and directed by Sello Maake Ka-Ncube. I stars a young talented  Anele Nene and versatile  Josias Dos Moleele. The duo’s combination is like made in heaven with both Bloke and His American Bantu endorsing them for telling their stories of years long gone. Their chemistry is compellingly commanding and the stage presence authoritative as they dance the sc

THE SUIT , a play of love story and humiliation  at The Market Theatre, May 2017 “I have always wanted to get into a rehearsal room with a bunch of actors and find a way to tell this beautiful and yet tragic tale  of  Philemon and Matilda,” says James  Ngcobo  the director of The Suit. The play is  effervescent of  passionate actors, with Zola  Nombona ( the youngest of the cast members)  as Matilda and  Siyabonga   T wala  as Philemon , both  as lead cast s .  Lindani Nkosi  narrates the play alongside  Andile   Nebulane  with Molefi Monaise  as old  Maphikela,  who broke the news of Matilda’s affair to Philemon at the bus station one morning.  Lesedi Motladi  is a dancer in this piece and appears on stage with movement, flair and prowess choreographed by  Luyanda   Sidiya .     Siyabonga Thwala as Philemon and Zola Nombona as Matilda. Pic Supplied The Suit is originally a short story by  Canodoise  Daniel  Themba , affectionately known as Can  Themba . The story was written in the 19

KATLEGO Chale as Oshoosi Size and Nhlakanipho Manqele as Ogun Size SUPPLIED Black History Month occurs in February every year and it has become synonymous to a celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history The origins of the Black History Month dawned in 1915,  half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment, act that  abolished slavery in the United States. Every year since his ascension to the position of artistic director of the Market Theatre in 2014, James Ngcobo has always made sure that he makes provision for a stage

On Sunday night, after countless postponements due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, I went to the Joburg Theatre's Nelson Mandela Theatre for highly-anticipated Gregory Maqoma's masterful choreographed dance piece which is fast becoming global Theatre piece, CION: Requiem of Ravel Bolero. Cion: Requiem of Ravel's Bolero   This dance piece  is inspired by the character Toloki in South African author Zakes Mda’s trilogy of novels ( Ways of Dying , Cion and latest  Wayfarers Hymn ) and music from French composer Maurice Ravel’s (1875–1937) Bolero. Bolero which is Ravel's most famous musical composition, is a one-movement orchestral piece, which he originally composed as a ballet commissioned by Russian actress and dancer Ida Rubinstein and premiered in 1928. Just like Maurice Ravel collaborated with Ida Rubinstein, and here too Gregory collaborated with the award wining Soweto Gospel Choir and musical composer and choreographer Nhlanhla Mahlangu. This dance pi

The national Lockdown alert level one feels like letting the prisoners out of the incarceration after long years of loneliness and less contact with the ordinary life. There is no exception with the art lovers who have not gathered in a long time and now are afforded the opportunity to mingle over a glass of wine, juice and water to those who enjoy not imbibing the brewed holy waters. On Sunday the 10 th of October 2021 at Johannesburg Art Gallery, one of the buzzing art galleries in South Africa – trapped in the middle of a busy taxi rand and ever congested Joubert Park, opened a two person’s exhibition by Professor Sharlene Khan and Mokgabudi Amos Letsoalo. An exhibition coined Post-apartheid Guernica is interesting to walk into a gallery driven by the marriage of two worded title. Post-apartheid obviously brings one back home to South Africa’s present state of regime whilst Guernica travels you to a town in northern Spain called Basque which was bombed and destroy

Es’kia Mphahlele in Memoria: Celebrating Zeke’s 102 nd Anniversary (1919-2021)   Dr. Tshepo Mvulane Moloi Screenshot from Newsroom Africa dmvulanemoloi@gmail.com   Outgoing Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Johannesburg Institute of Advanced Study (JIAS) at University of Johannesburg &  Research Associate for African Centre for Epistemology and Philosophy of Science (ACEPS) at University of Johannesburg   Commemoration Co-organised by Dr. Tshepo Mvulane Moloi and Mr. Khehla Chepape Makgato Theme: Commemorating the 102 nd Birthday Anniversary of Prof. Es’kia Mphahlele Date : Friday 17 th December 2021 Venue : Polokwane Library Gardens Thobela . Today we have convened, in order to commemorate the occasion of what chronologically signifies, the 102 nd anniversary of Es’kia Mphahlele (1919-2008). It is heretofore only appropriate that on this day, we graciously wish him, as the beloved son of Limpopo / Polokwane a happy post

Defined as, a form of poetry that tells a story, often using the voices of both a narrator and characters, narrative poetry is exactly what Infants of Dust by young poet, actor and playwright Sello Chokoe achieved in his latest anthology. Chokoe's storytelling prowess betoken a strength of true originality in aesthetics of lived experiences. Paging through this short collection, one is brimful of gratitude that Infants of Dust doesn't only make a fascinating read but also has a more personalized nature of poetic utterance, a display of considerably greater stylistic versatility than fiction which is often constricted by the demands of social realism. Infants of Dust book by Sello Chokoe. Pic: Khehla Chepape Makgato Chokoe journey us into his multifaceted worlds with myriad of declarations to the writer: 'Think of the truth as you ink', to the speaker: 'Redeem yourself from fear', to the listener: 'Bear your eardrums in the air' and finally to