Anir
Visual, Performance & Cultural Arts Experience






South Africa is home to 11 indigenous cultures but the most noted are the
Afrikaans/Cape Dutch, British, Ndebele, San, Xhosa and Zulu.
Our Art and Architecture Experience starts in Cape Town with a first visit to the
national cultural museum, then a visit to the colorful houses of the BoKapp area
and District six museum, a trip to the Winelands region Cape Dutch farm estates
contrasted by the shanty towns and township box structures. Next we travel to
KawZulu Natal to visit DumaZulu - the name means "Thundering Zulu" and is the
biggest Zulu Cultural Village in South Africa and also the only village officially
opened by Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini and thereby given the official stamp of
authenticity. From here we move to the Drakensberg Mountains to visit thriving
Zulu communities and to view San rock painting. Southern Africa has one of the
longest and richest rock-art traditions in the world. The uKhahlamba Drakensberg
region of KwaZulu-Natal is rich in rock art left behind by the San people. These
exquisite paintings tell stories of yesteryear and teach us more about the
mythology, ritual, and beliefs of the San. Long thought to be merely pictorial
journals of hunting trips and everyday life, researchers have now uncovered some
of the deeper meaning of the art.
Performance Art  Course 1 (15 days 3.5 credits)
Site Description:

We travel to the Eastern Cape Region of South Africa and the area of the
Grahamstown National Arts Festival, the biggest and most vibrant
celebration of South Africa's rich and multi-faceted culture. Grahamstown is
a quaint Eastern Cape city and home to the famed Rhodes University; for
11 days from the end of June through the first week of  July, Grahamstown
is transformed into the “country's creative crucible”.
From theatre (plays written by both South African National & International
play writes – from Shakespeare to Sekhabi) to dance (South Africa has not
only 11 indigenous cultural styles of dancing but also a very long history of
ballet and ballroom), opera to cabaret, fine art to craft art, classical music
to jazz and street drumming, poetry readings to lectures, every art form
imaginable is represented in one of the most diverse festivals in the world
with over 800 venues to choose from and for the cost of one Broadway
show or one Vegas venue you can see 7 outstanding Grahamstown
performances.
All of the arts from historic-indigenous to contemporary are represented.
Grahamstown itself is an unusual place. Founded in 1812 by Colonel John
Graham as a military headquarters for British troops during a series of
bitter clashes with indigenous Xhosa fighters. Largely untouched by
modern developments, Grahamstown is an English 19th century cathedral
town in a setting that is unmistakably African. It's a beguiling contrast
surrounded by the distinctive vegetation of the Eastern Cape with an
architectural cornucopia ranging from settler cottages, Victorian villas and
Georgian mansions to Gothic-style churches, barracks, Xhosa rondhovels,
boxy townships, museums and monuments.
Grahamstown is a walking community and for venues outside of walking
distance the festival provides shuttle buses; the festival is very family
friendly with events rated for age appropriateness. Because there are so
many venues to choose from everyone is free to pick what they would like
to attend.
Art, Architecture & Culture
Course 1(12-days 3 credits)
Course 2(17-days 4 credits)

Site Description: