Performance - Shakespeare School Fest: The Robben Island Shakespeare

Performance - Shakespeare School Fest: The Robben Island Shakespeare


This year the 9th Shakespeare School Festival South Africa (SSF SA) kicks off on 16 April 2019 and will be dedicated to Sonny Venkatrathnam who passed away on 15 March at the age of 84. During his incarceration on Robben Island, Venkatrathnam, an apartheid freedom fighter, smuggled in a copy of The Complete Works of Shakespeare, disguised it as a bible and passed it between a number of prisoners, including Nelson Mandela. Many of the inmates marked their favourite passages in the book and Mandela’s signature was found next to a quote from Julius Caesar, ‘Cowards die many times before their deaths, the valiant never taste of death but once.' The festival will open with the play by Matthew Hahn entitled The Robben Island Shakespeare, performed by former Vista Nova High School Learners and young actors from the Educasions group. Leading up to the 2019 festival, organiser Kseniya Filinova-Bruton and Festival MC Tafara Nyatsanza, who recently performed in Richard lll at Maynardville, will be hosting coaching workshops for Learners from various participating schools. Nyatsanza will also MC the festival. Participating schools involved in workshops include Darul Arqam Islamic HS, Chris Hani HS, Westlake Primary School, Leiden HS, Vista Nova HS and the Lalela Project. Facebook | @expressoshow.sabc3 | https://www.facebook.com/expressoshow... Twitter | @expressoshow | https://twitter.com/expressoshow Instagram | @expressoshow | https://www.instagram.com/expressoshow Pinterest | @expressomorning | https://www.pinterest.com/expressomor... Snapchat | @expressoshow | https://www.snapchat.com Website | http://www.expressoshow.com