January 31, 2007
By Ndaba Dlamini
THE hall at the Ipelegeng Community Centre is quiet. A few chairs are piled up at the back and a lone guitarist on the stage softly strums a tune.
But this is set to change in a few months' time, when the hall is converted into a full theatre that will stage workshop productions and community events. The renovations are thanks to the Herman van Veen Foundation, a Dutch organisation that helps the arts – particularly among children - in developing countries.
To be called the Miracle Theatre, it will be the first-ever theatre in Soweto and will be able to accommodate 344 people. Construction is expected to start as soon as the funds become available, probably in March this year, according to Nombuiselo Majova, the co-ordinator at the centre. Work was supposed to have started at the beginning of January this year.
"The Miracle Theatre will be a hive of activity come September 2007. The Thesele Creative Society, a community drama group from Soweto, will be the company in residence but the theatre will host guest performances by visiting companies," Majova says.
The hall at the Ipelegeng Community Centre is to be turned into a state-of-the-art theatre
Dutch performer Herman van Veen had the seed idea for the theatre, which will have retractable, racked seating and state-of-the-art technical equipment. It will cater for all age groups and, for those interested in developing their acting skills, there will be theatre workshops.
The initial cost of the theatre was pegged at €450 000 (about R4,3-million) but after quantity surveying work by Motsepe Architects, it was discovered that the construction would "cost more", Majova explained.
"We had a meeting with Inge Eijsenga, the project manager from the Herman van Veen Foundation, last week to discuss the costs of building the theatre. She said that the foundation had found partners in Holland to help cover the building costs."
On 24 September 2006, Van Veen and Anglican church ministers turned the sod and planted a tree to mark the birth of the Miracle Theatre, witnessed by members of the community and the Anglican church.
The Miracle Theatre will be managed by a joint board made up of members of the Ipelegeng Community Centre and the Thesele Creative Society. Its official opening will probably take place in September 2008, according to Majova. "The Miracle Theatre is definitely taking place."
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