Rapper Camouflage, the internationally acclaimed Cape Flats Tenors, jazz artist Sam Hoffmeester, boy band 4 Real and Flamenco group Los Gitanos are among the line-up for a cultural concert at the Bonteheuwel civic centre on Saturday April 28.
The concert for peace and human rights, called RISE willbe hosted by the Cape Cultural Collective (CCC) and the Bonteheuwel Legacy Arts Collective (BLAC). It starts from 2pm and entry is free.
Other artists and groups that will take part include the much-loved Rosa Choir, the energetic dancers of Northern Krump Kingdom, rock band Pneuma, poet and activist Irma Titus, Colin, the Bushman on guitar and the incredible Bonteheuwel Walking Ladies, who will do their delightful peace dance.
The audience will also be treated to the sweet voices of the children from the Junior Rosa Choir, who, like their adult counterparts, sing in English, Afrikaans and Xhosa. Jean Alexander, also from Bonteheuwel, will be the master of ceremonies.
The Cape Flats Tenors is composed of James Bhemgee, Eugene Jeptha and Bonteheuwel’s Sam Crous. Los Gitanos’ veteran guitarist Bienyameen Camroodien will perform with his 17-year-old son, Dawood.
The two cultural groups – the CCC and BLAC, are partnering with several organisations in Bonteheuwel to host this concert. The concert will bring artists and the community together as a call for peace and human rights through poetry, music and dance.
“RISE stands for Residents Inspire Social Empowerment. It is about building a better Bonteheuwel through arts, heritage and culture. It is about establishing peace in our community. It is about our human rights and our responsibilities as citizens,” said BLAC’s Irma Titus.
“Through creative performance we call for unity, love, peace and human rights, for all the people of Bonteheuwel. Together, we will make a call for decent housing, respect for all people regardless of race or creed, safe conditions in the community and the right to work, to decent health care and freedom of movement,” Ms Titus added.
Elizabeth Schutter, from the Cape Cultural Collective, said this was not simply an event but part of a process of healing, growth and development. The CCC is engaged in a project called the Community Voices for Human Rights event series. This will entail workshops and concerts that focus on human rights and that help to empower communities.
The programmes provide platforms for artists and create an opportunity for artists and communities to express mutual solidarity.
The event has been organised in collaboration with the following organisations: Joint Peace Forum (JPF); Bonteheuwel Walking Ladies (BWL); Northern Krump Kingdom (NKK); Live on the Stage; Bonteheuwel Ratepayers’ and Tenants’ Association (BRATA); Cape Flats News and the Bonteheuwel Multi-Purpose Centre.
The Cape Cultural Collective, started in 2007, is a diverse cultural group that promotes social change through arts and culture. It has run some very successful projects over a decade, including monthly cultural programmes, a poetry anthology, the celebrated Rosa Choir and a poetry production Uhadi, that was performed at the Paris Autumn Festival in 2013. The CCC launched a junior choir at the end of 2015 and two more choirs since.
Call Irma Titus on 084 857 2372 or email irmatitus911@gmail.com or June Knight on 079 183 5170 or email june.knight@gmail.com
