Racial tension, forbidden love, and identity crises are only some of the issues presented in this year's National Schools Festival.
Racial tension, forbidden love, and identity crises are only some of the issues presented in this year's National Schools Festival.
As matric students from different parts of the country converge in Grahamstown, an inevitable explosion of arts and culture occurs.
With day one at its end, many students appear to be eager to learn – others even preparing for growth.
“We’re expecting more from what we’ve seen,” said Lungile Dlamini, a student from Ixopo High School, KwaZulu-Natal.
The National Schools Festival in association with the De Beers Fund aims to educate matric students on certain social issues allowing them to become aware of themselves and each other, acknowledging and dealing with everyday situations.
The driving force behind the idea of the festival is to enrich the students in arts and culture and the role it plays in society.
In Rainbow Scars, a production by the Artscape Centre, the complex issue of racial divide is tackled.
Involving an adopted young black girl born after the ruins of the apartheid era, Rainbow scars is a captivating story that arises a lot of emotion in the audience. With many more shows still to come, the learning experience is endless.
“Many students come from structured, conservative backgrounds," says Tate Mhunduru, a pupil from Stanford Lake College in Limpopo. "This is a good experience for them to break these structures."
