When the Sea Comes to the Karoo
2014
Produced by Handspring Trust for Puppetry Arts & the CHR, UWC and Net Vir Pret.
A film by Jonathan Jones, Urban Lung Productions
‘When the Sea Comes to the Karoo’ tracks the making of the Barrydale Parade 2013 and the production, The Karoo Sea, presented on the Day of Reconciliation in Barrydale. The festivities focussed on reconciliation to bring the two sides of the town together through a visual spectacle. Using near life-size elephant puppets, goldfish made out of plastic bags and a sea in the Karoo, the cast lured spectators into a space where children are happily children again and where reconciliation starts with a conversation.
The video features puppets designed by former Handspring puppet maker, Andy Mias-Jones (Shrinkray), Dylan Hesh (Net Vir Pret youth leader), Mongi Mthombeni (Karoo Sea director), Peter Takelo (founder of Net Vir Pret), Shane Petzer (Magpie Art Collective). The music is by Mongi Mthobeni and additional footage by Graham Abbot.
The 2013 Barrydale Parade and Karroo Sea performance was presented by the Blumberg Family Foundation, Handspring Trust, Net Vir Pret, Magpie Art Collective, Centre for Humanities Research (CHR) at the University of the Western Cape and the SArCHi Chair in Social Change at the University of Fort Hare