Botho Arts Festival Boutique Edition Brings a Week of Creative Energy to Limpopo After a successful Tembisa Week curated by TX Theatre in Tembisa , the spotlight now shifts to Limpopo , where the Botho Arts Festival Boutique Edition will take centre stage. The festival will unfold across two locations — Polokwane Library Gardens and Jane Furse — creating a vibrant cultural space for artists and  audiences from across the province. The festival is an initiative supported by the National Arts Council of South Africa under the PESP 6 programme , a national intervention designed to stimulate the arts sector, create opportunities for practitioners, and ensure that artistic activity continues to reach communities across the country.             Image  Source: Mashupe Phala At the helm of the festival is Mashupe Phala , a respected Limpopo arts practitioner who has consistently advocated for the development and recognition of the province’s cre...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE More Chorus Members Confirmed for 10 South African Sopranos Imibungazo Personality Management Production is pleased to confirm the full 10-voice chorus for 10 South African Sopranos: From the Cross to the Crown, taking place on 28 and 29 March 2026 at the Mandela Theatre, Joburg Theatre. Following the announcement of the first five members yesterday, the remaining five chorus members have now been confirmed, completing the 10-voice ensemble that will support the 10 South African Sopranos in this landmark production. Newly announced chorus members: Nonkululeko Micaela Kokela – A Daveyton-born vocalist who began singing at the age of eight. She studied jazz at the Music Academy of Gauteng in 2024 and performs regularly at church and corporate events. Happy Ngcane Hadebe – A Midrand-based performing artist with formal theatre training and award-winning stage experience. A soprano with international performance exposure, she brings both dramatic and vocal strength t...

  Press Release DistroKid and Spotify Partner to Empower South African Artists Through Education and Digital Distribution Johannesburg, South Africa – March 2026 Global digital distributor, DistroKid , headquartered in New York, has announced a landmark partnership with Spotify to empower creatives across South Africa. This collaboration marks a historic necessary step in advancing access to digital distribution and strengthening Spotify’s education mission within the artist community. The initiative is designed to support both traditional artists and independent emerging talents across diverse genres. By combining DistroKid’s expertise in digital distribution with Spotify’s commitment to artist education, the partnership aims to create sustainable pathways for musicians to share their work with global audiences. Key elements of the partnership include: -  Culturally grounded awareness programs to increase understanding of digital distribution and its role in modern music ca...

20 Powerful Voices Join 10 South African Sopranos at Joburg Theatre Imibungazo Personality Management Production is proud to confirm that the full vocal ensemble for 10 South African Sopranos: From the Cross to the Crown is taking shape. The production will feature 10 opera sopranos and 10 gospel singers , forming a dynamic 20-voice chorus for performances on 28 and 29 March 2026 at the Mandela Theatre, Joburg Theatre. This carefully curated ensemble brings together classical precision and gospel intensity, creating a spiritually immersive and musically expansive experience. The Chorus will serve as the emotional backbone of the production, guiding audiences through reflection, lamentation and triumph. The production is directed by Mapula Setlhako , conducted by Unathi Malunga , with musical direction by Tshepo Mngoma . The 20 voices will collaborate with a 20-piece orchestra to deliver a layered and transcendent sound. Produced by Sibongile Mngoma, the work will be narrated by Lelet...

  When Silence Becomes Complicity in the Cultural & Creative Industries An Opinion Piece by Thami akaMbongo Manzana There is an uncomfortable culture festering within South Africa’s Cultural & Creative Industries: negativity sells, but courage is quarantined. We are loud when there is scandal. We are animated when there is gossip. We are united when someone has passed on . But when living practitioners confront injustice in real time, we retreat into silence. This is not coincidence. It is conditioning. And it is costing the sector its soul.                 Image  Source: Artists United Case Study 1: SAMRO and the Fear of Public Solidarity Music is one of the most powerful cultural forces in South Africa. It shapes identity, influences politics, and carries the stories of generations. Yet when serious concerns are raised about governance, transparency, and fairness at the South African Music Rights Organisati...

  THE KINGDOM OF UBUNTU MUSICAL REIMAGINED A must-see Afro-epic for a world in need of unity, 6 & 7 March, Artscape Opera House – all new music, all new characters and script.   Cape Town, South Africa -  The world feels increasingly divided - by power, politics, fear and fractured identities – so it is timely that a freshly reimagined Afro-epic rises to the stage to ask the question we can no longer avoid: What truly holds us together? The Kingdom of Ubuntu, opening at Artscape Theatre Centre in the Opera House on 6 and 7 March 2026, is not just a music concert.  It is a living allegory for our times - a cinematic, deeply African musical experience that places unity, responsibility and shared humanity at the centre of the story.  It will be presented as a semi-staged production for this South African production.   Created, written, directed and composed by acclaimed producer and cultural storyteller Elvis Sibeko, The Kingdom of Ubuntu brings toget...