Amanda Bothma News Today

Sampling bizarre food pairings such as canned beef with grapes or prawns with wine gums is all part of former East Londoner Moshe Ndiki’s new TV gig. As the zany host of S3’s (formerly SABC3) vibrant new show Ready Steady Cook, Ndiki’s job is to make sure contestants and the celebrity chefs assigned to them produce edible, beautifully plated dishes in just 20 minutes, with much mayhem and laughter during the recording.

In the shade of a wild fig tree, children gathered to watch Jackal and Wolf, a colourful fable told through puppets, masks and amapiano dance breaks. For the next five weeks, East London theatre company Wêla Kapela Productions will be on the road, travelling to nearly 50 schools across the Eastern Cape after securing R342,000 through the National Arts Council's (NAC) Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP 4).

There are about 3,000 shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which transforms the capital city of Scotland into a carnival of artists from about the wold, all jostling for audiences.

The National Arts Festival programme launched a flurry of over 200 shows, and now that bookings are open, East London performers have been gearing up to showcase their talents.

The audience has spoken and East London thespians have come out on top, winning numerous categories in the 2022 BroadwayWorld Regional Awards. Winners included Amanda Bothma of Wêla Kapela Productions, Sonwa Sokuba, Daniel Anderson, Nathan Johannisen, Akhona Nkinti, Bathandwa Diniso and the ensemble casts of multiple Wêla Kapela productions.

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND is a joyous expression of music and dance from start to finish. It’s feel-good musical theatre at its best and this production from Wêla Kapela is just wonderful. I had a blast in the audience from the moment I walked into the auditorium.

The Guild Theatre stage has been transformed into a magical island by Wela Kapela's latest production Once on this Island, which opened last night to an explosion of colour and song.

Offering three productions to the Umtiza Festival programme, Amanda Bothma, director of Wela Kapela Productions, has lots in store for festival goers this weekend.