Forgotten Angle Theater Collaborative (FATC) has been developing a creative ecosystem in Mpumalanga for many years.
In just over a week, South Africa will celebrate Human Rights Day, and one of the most neglected rights is equality.
People living in rural areas tend to be denied access to countless opportunities alongside those in urban areas.
When it comes to the arts, the country's largest metropolitan area has more access to opportunities for creative and artistic development than you'll encounter in remote areas of Mzansi.
This Human Rights Month, the My Body My Space (MBMS) Public Arts Festival is dedicating time to Mpumalanga's creative communities rather than the larger cities of Mbombela (formerly Nelspruit), Witbank and Mkondo (formerly Piet Retief). A gap that few people usually step into.
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accessibility
My Body My Space: Public Arts Festival is a major international festival of public performances, exhibitions, and cultural events organized by The Forgotten Angle Theater Collaborative (FATC).
Since its first launch in 2015, the festival has continued to grow year on year by developing a unique rural identity that is deeply rooted in the Emhazeni community, drawing people into art and community rather than following urban conventions. Ta.
Festival founder PJ Sabaga said the move was made after FATC recognized the need for artistic opportunities in Mpumalanga.
“We live here, we work here, and we intentionally moved here to make art more accessible to marginalized people,” he said. . citizen.
The organization was previously based in Wattville, Benoni. MBMS is a festival focused on performances, exhibitions, and cultural events.
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social impact
MBMS Festival focuses on social cohesion in a region that still lacks socio-political and socio-economic integration, puncturing and disrupting the familiar ways in which people move through shared social spaces. unites the diverse rural population of Emahazeni.
“We are proud that this wonderful festival and its unique voices will continue for a ninth year, as we strive to inspire and engage audiences with a diverse range of rural artists and South African artists in general, working across disciplines. I’m really looking forward to doing that.”
The festival begins on Monday and runs through the weekend. “The first few days will be focused on schools and community centers,” Sabaga said.
The founder said he has witnessed continuous growth in the overall arts community in Mpumalanga, comparing it to when FACT arrived in the province nearly a decade ago.
“I felt like there was nothing. [artistic] The ecosystem when we arrived. But now young people are running their own organizations…Those who were young artists at the time are not our partners and collaborators,” Sabaga asserted.
By integrating existing organizational programmes, the festival primarily engages children, young people and people with disabilities from the communities of Machadodorp/Mthongeni, Belfast/Siyatuka, Dullstroom/Sakerwe and Waterval Boven/Mgwenya.
Boost local economy and tourism, arts and culture by developing local audiences and attracting a wider range of domestic and international visitors.
“We celebrate the vulnerable in our communities and bring them into the mainstream. Our programs, hand-picked to focus on human rights and the environment in this critical election year, are always about the status quo. It fulfills the purpose of art, which is to question and demand higher standards,” Sabaga said. “It sets standards of accountability and care for everyone.”
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