THE Pretoria run of African Opera based on the life of Nelson Mandela was abruptly cancelled, with the show’s creator claiming the main sponsor had failed to pay an amount initially agreed upon, a claim which has been denied.
The opera premiered in the city on Friday last week to positive reviews however despite this Unathi Mtirara, grandchild of Mandela’s cousin Justice Mtirara, cancelled the rest of the show’s run.
It was scheduled to appear until June 1 before coming to the Eastern Cape for one night only.
Mtirara said the National Lotteries Board of South Africa had agreed to give them R11-million but only gave them R2.8-million.
“The costs were way more than what they had given us, we couldn’t afford to keep the show going,” he said, adding that unless they received more funding they would be unable to host more shows.
“The show was supposed to end on June 1 anyway... we will just focus on the Eastern Cape show for now,” he said.
The National Lotteries Board (NLB) confirmed it had paid the African Cultural Organisation of South Africa (Acosa) R2.86-million on May 26, saying it had never agreed to pay R11million.
In a media statement published on its website it said: “The original grant application was for R11.8-million and the NLB awarded R2.86-million. The NLB was not in a position to fund the entire amount because of a limited funding budget.... The funded aspects were detailed in the grant agreement. ... to say the opera had to be cancelled as a result of lack of payment by the NLB is incorrect.”
Mtirara said the show had ended up becoming a political issue with members of the cast receiving messages from people accusing them of promoting the ANC.
“This was never about the ANC, it was about telling the story of Dalibhunga the way we feel it should be told.”
He said there were people who were trying to score political points from them. “It ended up becoming a political thing, people coming forward and saying they can help us but we made it clear this was not an ANC or DA thing.”
Mtirara said people who went to see the show had enjoyed it. “People loved the show, everyone who came to watch on opening night had a positive thing to say. Some were even saying it was a unique South African story and it was on point,” Mtirara said.
He also added that people said the opera portrayed Mandela as the man next door. “They felt his presence from the songs and not a single person said it was a bad story.”
A special one-night show will still take place on July 18 at the Qunu Museum. —
Madiba’s opera put on ice after dispute
The opera premiered in the city on Friday last week to positive reviews however despite this Unathi Mtirara, grandchild of Mandela’s cousin Justice Mtirara, cancelled the rest of the show’s run.
It was scheduled to appear until June 1 before coming to the Eastern Cape for one night only.
Mtirara said the National Lotteries Board of South Africa had agreed to give them R11-million but only gave them R2.8-million.
“The costs were way more than what they had given us, we couldn’t afford to keep the show going,” he said, adding that unless they received more funding they would be unable to host more shows.
“The show was supposed to end on June 1 anyway... we will just focus on the Eastern Cape show for now,” he said.
The National Lotteries Board (NLB) confirmed it had paid the African Cultural Organisation of South Africa (Acosa) R2.86-million on May 26, saying it had never agreed to pay R11million.
In a media statement published on its website it said: “The original grant application was for R11.8-million and the NLB awarded R2.86-million. The NLB was not in a position to fund the entire amount because of a limited funding budget.... The funded aspects were detailed in the grant agreement. ... to say the opera had to be cancelled as a result of lack of payment by the NLB is incorrect.”
Mtirara said the show had ended up becoming a political issue with members of the cast receiving messages from people accusing them of promoting the ANC.
“This was never about the ANC, it was about telling the story of Dalibhunga the way we feel it should be told.”
He said there were people who were trying to score political points from them. “It ended up becoming a political thing, people coming forward and saying they can help us but we made it clear this was not an ANC or DA thing.”
Mtirara said people who went to see the show had enjoyed it. “People loved the show, everyone who came to watch on opening night had a positive thing to say. Some were even saying it was a unique South African story and it was on point,” Mtirara said.
He also added that people said the opera portrayed Mandela as the man next door. “They felt his presence from the songs and not a single person said it was a bad story.”
A special one-night show will still take place on July 18 at the Qunu Museum. —
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