CRADOCK NEWS - The community, and previous attendees, are looking forward to this year's Schreiner: Karoo Writers Festival (SKWF) from 16 to 21 June.
The SKWF will once again activate a multi-faceted educational outreach along with the main programme.
Activities on the youth programme run from 16 to 21 June, while the main programme is scheduled for 17 and 18 June.
According to Lisa Ker, SKWF organiser, the convener of youth events at the festival, Melina Smit, said they are very excited to enjoy the generous ongoing involvement support of The AVBOB Poetry Project for our vision of giving young people a confident voice.
"To reach the maximum number of young people we invest in training educators in the fusion of creative writing and the other expressive arts." Smit is a senior education specialist at the Eastern Cape Department of Education."
Free digital books
Founding sponsor of the festival, AMAZWI South African Museum of Literature, is sending a ground force for dynamic interaction with several Cradock schools.
During the last two days of the event, the AMAZWI team will spiral out into the community, introducing 20 digital children's books which were created during the recent Big Makhanda Book Dash X. (Cradock-based writer, Charmaine van Wyk, had a hand in one of the titles.)
These e-books will be distributed on memory sticks and are copyright free for printing.
Main programme
Ker said the events on this year's main programme shift between four venues: talks at Schreiner House (an AMAZWI satellite); across the road the Cross Street Pop-Up Fusion Arts Hub offers an interactive experience titled, Where Words and Art Collide; around the corner in Market Street, Couch conversations will be interspersed with Fusion Performance Art events at Die Tuishuise and Victoria Manor Hotel (also known as The Vic); each day will culminate in a Late Night Open Mic session (from 20:00) at KarooBrew Bistro in Durban Street.
The main programme opens at Schreiner House with AMAZWI director, Beverley Thomas as an anchor.
Professor Paul Walters and Jeremy Fogg re-enact the dramatic (and very amusing story) of Olive Schreiner's rescue from the Zambezi. Dean Allen will talk about his Frontier Land and Marike Beyers will review poet Kobus Moolman's response to the Karoo landscape. Also inspired by the Karoo landscape, Izak de Vries will reflect on how his writing has progressed since his early work, Van die Karoo gepraat.
Award-winning writer Henrietta Rose-Innes will share her experiences of writing and translating Afrikaans fiction.
There will also be conversations and some networking.
During the festival, attendees can also look forward to some interactive art installations.
"Many people in rural areas make art but seldom visit art museums or galleries to experience art installations up close and personal. So, this will be a rare and delightful experience - underscoring our belief that art is healing, creative and can help bind communities together: one of our cornerstone objectives," said Ker.
- For more information contact Ker on 082 410 5596 or lisa@tuishuise.co.za
- For the program and bookings email reservations@tuishuise.co.za; or phone 048 881 1650.
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