Basic Education Deputy Minister, Dr Reginah Mhaule, delivered the keynote address during the opening of the 2023 Cradle of Creativity International Arts Festival. The Festival, which is being hosted at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg, opened on 20 and will draw to a close on 27 August 2023. The opening performance, “The Visitors”, was developed by German theatre company, Dorcas Park and South Africa’s Windybrow Arts Centre.
Mr Sifiso Ngobese, Director for DBE’s Sport and Enrichment in Education Directorate, explained that, “the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has entered into a partnership with the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People (ASSITEJ) SA as part of a registered global network that promotes and facilitates learning through the arts. ASSITEJ SA unites artists and theatres to maximise children’s exposure to high quality performing arts, along with artists, companies, institutions and schools from across South Africa. Since its establishment in 2007, it has made an impact on dance and theatre for young audiences, engaging with education, touring productions, hosting arts festivals and providing platforms for emerging and established artists”.
ASSITEJ SA, together with the DBE and Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) is hosting the Festival in 2023 for performers for the first time in the Gauteng Province, with learners from across the country being invited to attend to showcase their talents. The Festival will be showcasing around 20 different productions, which also features a strong dance focus and opportunities for intercultural exchange.
The festival will also be a seat of an ASSITEJ International Executive Committee Meeting and an African regional workshop, as part of the BABEL, EU-funded ASSITEJ project, which focusses on the Art of Listening in TYA, with delegates from more than 30 countries attending.
“The DBE’s goal is to build awareness of the vital role of the arts in education and whole-child development, whilst strengthening the practice of Creative Arts in creches, schools and community spaces through intercultural exchange and collaboration, within the broader framework of social cohesion and nation building. The DBE wishes to, through this initiative, encourage more schools and youth to participate in these platforms, supported by educators and parents, because there is sufficient research evidence that points to sport, arts and culture as a game changer to reduction of high risk behaviour among youth” explained Mr Likho Bottoman, Director for Social Cohesion and Equity in Education.
The network of non-profit organisations was founded in Paris in 1965, and has established branches and memberships in approximately 100 countries around the globe. The Creativity Festival focusses on the promotion of the theatre and the performing arts for all young adolescents and hopes to inspire young audiences to engage with a wide range of social issues through live performances.