The Grahamstown National Arts Festival‘s slogan is ’10 days of amazing’. Here are 10 reasons why.
1. The Location
The sleepy hollow of Grahamstown might be small, but this town is jammed so full of character, it beats any big city when it comes to being the National Arts Festival‘s host (and has been for the last 37 years). You can’t help but love the 1820 Settler homes, wide-open roads, charming university campus and friendly residents. You can take a 15-minute walk practically anywhere and best of all- there is minimal traffic. The town comes alive during the National Arts Festival with B&B’s and other businesses booming and the town’s population almost doubling in size. Grahamstown is a great host for the annual event with local schools, university buildings, and town halls transforming into venues for shows, as well as reasonably priced accommodation for visitors. You always feel a part of the festivities while walking past buskers trying to make a few bucks, taking in tons of posters adverting shows and buying gluwein on the side of the road to keep you toasty as you walk to your next show.
2. The Shows
The festival programme is divided into two sections: main (shows that have been selected by festival organisers to perform) and the fringe (anyone who can pay for a venue can perform) meaning there are a large range of events to choose from. Music, drama, comedy, dance, film are all on offer and they are all quite reasonably priced. Shows range from about R30 (fringe) to R150 (main) which is quite a bargain considering some of the talent you get to see. Watching Ladysmith Black Mambazo perform this year was a highlight for me, but there were many other shows I saw that were absolutely brilliant. Street theatre is free and can be very entertaining (if a bit experimental sometimes). If you aren’t sure what shows you would like to see, pop into the sunset shows at the Monument every day at 5pm to see short snippets of various shows that are on during the week.
3. The Food
What would a festival be like without food? Dismal in my opinion! The Village Green is the hub of food lovers central, a field covered in marquee tents selling everything from potjie pots to hippie clothes (and of course food, lots of it!). Choose between Chinese, Italian, Greek, Hare Khrishna (try the chickpea fudge if you can- it’s delicious!), Kudu Burgers, healthy food, oily food and don’t forget the mini doughnuts (drizzled with your choice of chocolate or caramel sauce). The Long Table is a restaurant and bar that opens up just for festival time and a favourite for many actors, and regular festival-goers. Sitting at a set of long tables, it’s a great way to meet new friends and eavesdrop on other people’s conversations about shows they’ve seen. The food is homely and warming to the usually very cold body. Coffee is an absolute necessity to keep you warm and after late nights. My favourite spot is Homeground Coffee on Hill Street. They grind all of their coffee beans at the shop and their hot chocolate or flat white is the perfect way to start off the morning.
4. Arts and crafts and other awesome stuff to buy
The festival is a great place to pick up gifts, or just loads of awesome stuff for yourself (my bank balance is looking very unhealthy at the moment). I was very impressed with the price of things on sale at the Village Green Market, definitely a lot cheaper than other markets I have been to in Cape Town. Even better is that towards the end of festival, traders start massive sales to try get rid of stock. If you have kids it’s a great place to let them entertain themselves on the field while you do your shopping.
5. The Festival Characters
Anyone who has been lucky enough to attend the festival will know what I am talking about. It is the perfect place to people-watch, as there are some very interesting colourful characters in town: Hippies with dreadlocks adorned in tie-dyed clothing; Eastern Cape farmers with heavy accents and veldskoene as well as tourists buying out all the African curio stores.
6. Art Exhibitions
If you are interested in art the festival showcases plenty of talented artists. Exhibitions are spread out across town and it’s a nice way to spend your time in between shows. A lot of art is for sale so you may find a nice piece for your home or a present for a loved one.
7. Weather
Okay to be honest the weather is crap most of the time. However, in many ways the festival wouldn’t be the same without the notorious cold, icy weather. It’s the perfect excuse to enjoy as much red wine, coffee, gluhwein and delicious food as you can. It is advisable to bring as much warm clothing as possible, but you can always stock up on beanies and scarves at the Village Green market. Many restaurants have fireplaces which will help you feel slightly warmer.
8. Cue Newspaper
Cue is the daily festival newspaper run by the Rhodes University Journalism School. Students form a large part of the staff and the newspaper runs stories and reviews about productions and interesting things going on at festival. The short reviews of many of the fringe and main shows help festival-goers choose what shows they are keen to see. It really is a reliable, excellent source of information for anyone attending the festival.
9. Night Life
Grahamstown might not have the same happening night life as Jozi or Cape Town, but there are a few spots that have a really great atmosphere for a drink or two (or three). Pirates gets pumping late at night with local bands performing and pizzas for sale. It was started a few years ago by Rhodes students who sold pizzas from their res rooms, until it expanded to the awesome spot it is today. The Rat & Parrot is another favourite amongst Grahamstown locals. It is very centrally located and has great pub food. For those looking to squeek some takkie, Friar Tucks is a bit of a hole, but after a few drinks can be quite fun. The Long Table (mentioned under food) has a vibey bar that gets busy after all the late night shows have ended.
10. It happens every year
Just when you feel like you’re worn out after all the shows, people, cold weather and general craziness of the week, the festival comes around again the next year for an even better experience.
The National Arts Festival will take place in Grahamstown next year between Thursday 28 June and Sunday 8 July.
For more information on the National Arts Festival visit http://www.nationalartsfestival.co.za/page/2012
To read reviews of shows from this year’s National Arts Festival visit http://cue.ru.ac.za/
