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1999...goodbye

In 1999 Maru a Pula School changed its Headmaster for the 3rd time in its 27-year existence.

The Millennium closes with Maitisong still the only functioning public theatre in Botswana, despite 33 years of Independence and amazing prosperity.

The Maitisong Festival, now 13 years old, has grown into a national event and is the biggest and longest running performing arts festival in Botswana.

The Botswana Music Camp, now 15 years old, is unique in the region. It caters for anyone interested in music and offers a mix of Botswana’s traditional music and western music.

Maitisong has logged onto the new information technology with a web page (www.info.bw/~maitisong/) and e-mail (maitisong@info.bw)

We at Maitisong wish you a very happy Christmas and a most memorable millennium

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. . . . quick reviews:

Since the last newsletter there have been a lot of shows in Maitisong - too many
to review in detail. Here are some one-line impressions . . . .

PEATBOG FAERIES flitted in, courtesy of the British
Council. They gave a high-powered, fully-amplified performance that mixed
Scottish traditional tunes and instruments with the modern sounds of dance
bands. Much appreciated by the (partisan?) audience.

MARU A PULA ONE ACT PLAYS were chosen,
directed and acted by the students. Interesting that the winning entry had
chosen the best script.

B.D.F. BANDS IN CONCERT STYLE came to
Maitisong for the second time. A most enjoyable - if too long - programme
of a quite dazzling array of music and dance, including the Scottish pipes.
Makes you realise how important the B.D.F. is in the development of music
here. The evening belonged to the PANTSOLA DANCERS without a doubt.
The style, polish and imagination of these dancers was completely irresistible.
They MUST be seen again.

TUTTI & SOLI may sound like fish vendors in Cape Town, but
was really the Maru a Pula Music Department giving their first ever (after 27 years)
concert of music in the school. There was the orchestra complete with guitar and
jazz drums playing Grieg and Rock (that’s the ‘TUTTI’ bit) ; there were solo singers,
solo instrumentalists (the ‘SOLI’ bit) and, of course, the famous Marimba band.
It was a good first concert - worth the wait?

BACK BYTES was a Ditsala tsa Maitisong function to raise money
for the new sound system: Andrew Buckland in a virtuoso one-man performance
of extracts from his many shows. At times very funny in a sort of slap-stick way;
at times lyrical in its beauty, at times obscure in its meaning; sometimes pure
unspoken mime, sometimes with cleverly accented speech and sometimes
using sounds rather than words. Unforgettable was the virtual Princess from
a computer game. Unfortunately, not a show with mass appeal.

In 1999 we lost a good friend in Malcolm McKenzie, the out-going principal, and welcomed, in his place, NEIL SMOOKER.

The Maitisong Festival was ‘bigger and better’ bringing ABDULLAH IBRAHIM, legendary Jazz giant from Cape Town. He packed out Maitisong. The Festival Concert featured young Batswana soloists singing with orchestra in a Choral Festival that was very successful. It revealed deep talent and ability for classical choral singing.

In July one hundred young musicians came from Belgium with the FLANDERS PHILHARMONIC YOUTH ORCHESTRA and were put up by willing and generous families in Gaborone. The B.D.F. held its annual bands concert in Maitisong for the second year running. Alliance Francaise, the British Council and the India Association of Botswana are the only cultural agencies still bringing quality shows to Maitisong. The British Council's much heralded dance group, R.J.C., came to Maitisong but were confounded by a power failure that affected the whole area. Alliance Francaise brought the jazz group MEDDY GERVILLE which was a great evening. The Maru a Pula School Interact Club organised an extremely ambitious TALK SHOW about AIDS and the Youth, sponsored by UNICEF, that was most successful. The 99 Music Camp at Ramatea is still to come.

Maru a Pula School decided not to put on their major production in the Festival and instead staged TROJANS in June. The school Student Advisory Council used Maitisong on a regular basis for their entertainments: the wildly popular V-SHOWS, the elegant PROM, FRESHERS’ BALL and the discos.

The Maitisong Mobile, originally used as three separate mobiles, for the Opening show of the 10^th Anniversary 1997 Festival, was made into a single mobile by ANN GOLLIFER and hangs in the Walkway. It is a really beautiful piece of art from Botswana.

Maitisong was extremely lucky to keep the good friendship of HiVOS, the Dutch funding agency, CRESTA LODGE, MMEGI and the K.M.S. TRUST, a long time supporter of Maitisong. The Government, through the DEPARTMENT of CULTURE, was a major supporter of the Maitisong Festival, but, for the first time, reduced its support of the Botswana Music Camp.

1999 also marked the passing of DINER SEWELA, Maitisong's first technical assistant. He is the second of Maitisong's former assistants to fall victim to the gathering tragedy of the AIDS scourge.

NEWSLETTER BY e-mail: You can receive the Maitisong Newsletter by e-mail without pictures and flashy graphics. Send your e-mail address and P10 to MAITISONG NEWSLETTER, P,BAG 0045, GABORONE. e-mail: maitisong@info.bw

1999 Activities in review by month
JANUARY KOTO & FLUTE INDIAN CULTURAL EVENING India Ass	JULY PIANO STUDIO Lisa Markovic GOSPEL SOLOS Krem FLUTE FROM SOUTH INDIA India Association FRESHERS' BALL Map S.A.C. SEMINAR - 'Lights Of Hope' Brahma Kumaris FLANDERS PHILHARMONIC YOUTH ORCHESTRA Cresta Lodge PTA QUIZ NIGHT Map P.T.A. Congregational HARMONICS CONCERT
FEBRUARY BLACK VOICES British Council	AUGUST LUNCHTIME CONCERT Gab Music Society PIANO STUDIO RECITAL Jasmina Veldic AMA & FRIENDS NURSERY SCHOOL ARTS FESTIVAL Prosper Creations CHORAL CONCERT Lutheran Church INDIAN CULTURAL GROUP India Ass
MARCH PULA! Reetsanang BAROQUE TRIO WORKSHOP: Soweto Dance Theatre SOWETO DANCE THEATRE CELLISSIMO SQUAWK! KABOOM! THREE PENNY OPERA (film) Gabs Film Society ABDULLAH IBRAHIM WORKSHOP: Abangani NAMIBIA HOME BREW WORKSHOP: Marzipans MARZIPANS Mereway School, MAP MARIMBA GIRLS PLUS EITA! BOTSWANA TRIBHANGI WORKSHOP: Tribhangi. FESTIVAL POPS Nat Chamber Orch CHORAL FESTIVAL CONCERT	SEPTEMBER ONAM CELEBRATION Kerala Samajam MUSIC CONCERT TRIO CONCERT Gudrun Weeks STUDENT RECITAL Gudrun Weeks WOMEN OF INFLUENCE Women's Aglow International
APRIL STEVE DYER AND HIS QUARTET Ditsala Tsa Maitisong V-SHOW MaP S.A.C. STRING STUDENTS' RECITAL Gudrun Weeks SIKH CULTURAL EVENING Sikh Council	OCTOBER PARADISE ISLAND Jump Dance School ANTONY PEEBLES British High Commission SCHOOLS' CONCERT Gab Music Society TALK SHOW Map Interact UNICEF PEATBOG FAERIES British Council
MAY CREATIVE VARIETY SHOW EXTRAVAGANZA Pudulugong Rehab Centre MEDDY GERVILLE TRIO Alliance Francaise	NOVEMBER B.D.F. BANDS IN CONCERT STYLE CONCERT BY TUTTI & SOLI Maru A Pula Music BACK BYTES Ditsala Tsa Maitisong SEASONS Risa Ballet MAGIC MOZART Gaborone Music Soc
JUNE PUNA CD LAUNCH Stona Records TROJANS! Maru A Pula Drama	DECEMBER BOTSWANA MUSIC CAMP (Dept Culture, KMS Trust, Sefalana, HiVOS)