September 10, 2007
By George Matlala
MOVING to the beat, thousands of people partied through the streets of Joburg on Saturday, joining in the annual Pale ya Rona Carnival.
Brightly coloured floats paraded up and down the streets of Braamfontein and Newtown, accompanied by even more flamboyantly dressed revelers.
The Pale ya Rona Carnival, now in its third year, is organised by the Gauteng department of sport, arts, culture, and recreation to boost the province's creative industries and help create jobs.
Dancers get ready to thrill the crowds
More than 7 000 people took part in the festival on 8 September, dancing to the infectious rhythms of the parade.
By 9am the grounds of the National School of Arts in Braamfontein was frenetic, with participants putting the final touches to their floats or practising their moves.
On hand to inspect the results of weeks of intense efforts were Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa and his entourage, including the MEC for sport, arts, culture and recreation, Barbara Creecy.
After declaring the carnival open, Shilowa led the parade atop of a float festooned with lions, elephant horns and replicas of Soccer City and Soweto's Power Park.
Dozens of people peered from windows or crowded on to balconies as the parade moved through the flat-lands of the inner city. Others lined the streets to cheer.
Pounding the streets and creating a buzz with their thumping rhythms, Joburg's Zulu dancers were a crowd favourite, while the carnival bikers in their black leathers and hip helmets added an extra roar of excitement, doing wheelies and doughnuts on the steets.
Various regions were represented, each with its own theme: Joburg's theme was Meropa ya sechaba sa Jozi (the rhythm of Jozi community on the move); Tshwane's was Meshito ya Tshwane (the rhythm of Tshwane); Ekurhuleni emphasised its position as the gateway to the province with Kgoro tsa merafe; and Sedibeng focused on Segametsi mohloding (water carrier).
When the premier's float crossed the Nelson Mandela Bridge, the tail of the parade was just setting out from the schoolgrounds in Braamfontein.
The parade ended in Newtown, near the Sci Bono Discovery Centre.
Various category winners were announced, including the Zulu dancers taking an award for best choreography. The Meshito ya Tshwane float won for best interpretation of the theme. The Ndebele women from Metsweding took first place in the cultural presentation category and the MEC's special award went to Ekurhuleni for the airplane costume.
Creecy described the carnival as unique and authentic, including as it did all of South Africa's cultures. "It is becoming our own cultural product."
More than 7 000 people took part in the carnival
The Gauteng carnival is part of the province's Creative Industries Strategy, which is aimed at developing the creative industries to contribute to economic growth, job creation, community development and urban regeneration.
It was the culmination of months of preparation, which included drumming and choreography workshops, costume design, mask making and welding.
"Across the world, the carnivals combine performing and visual arts into a celebration of collective identity and community aspiration," Creecy said.
Permission to use web site material
Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as:
- Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website
(www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency
(www.joburg.org.za)";
- If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original
article on this website;
- The name of the article's author is acknowledged;
-
The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill
in this brief online form).
Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 |
