This 15th edition of Afrovibes Festival is from 4 until 14 October and presents both young pioneers and established talent in theatre, dance, music, poetry and design from Africa in The Netherlands. Afrovibes shows the dynamic cultural life of Urban Africa with a programme by African and Dutch artists. The festival takes place in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Den Haag and Rotterdam and brings a diverse programme of performances, theatre, dance, debates and afterparties at a variety of locations.
LAND
The festival theme of this year is LAND. Land is often only seen as material. As the ground, the earth on which we live. But land is so much more, literally and metaphorically. People have an emotional and spiritual connection with the land they inhabit. Land is part of your identity. Migration, exploitation or protection of the country you live in are also current topics in Africa and in Europe. Contemporary African and Dutch artists show us what LAND means to them.
Dates and theatres/cities
Amsterdam 4 - 6 October Compagnietheater, 5 - 7 October Tolhuistuin, 7 October Bimhuis, 9 & 10 October De Balie and 12 October Bijlmer Parktheater.
The Hague 6 & 7 October Het Nationale Theater (Theater a/h Spui) and 8 October Institute of Social Studies.
Rotterdam 13 & 14 October Maaspodium and 14 October Kunsthal.
Utrecht 13 October Stadsschouwburg Utrecht and 14 October TivoliVredenburg.
This year Afrovibes is celebrating its 15th edition!
The festival was founded in 1999 by initiator Vuyo Raymond Matinyana (1969 - 2001). Raymond was a South African artist and singer who came to the Netherlands and settled in Amsterdam. Here he first founded the Afrovibes Band from which the festival derives its name. In addition to his career as a singer, Raymond also performed as a drag artist called Miss Thandi, both in the Netherlands and in South Africa.
Raymond wanted to connect South Africa with the Netherlands and it’s out of this wish that he realized the Afrovibes Festival in 1999. The first edition was on June 16, 1999 in De Rode Hoed in Amsterdam with, among other, a performance by his own Afrovibes Band. Nowadays, Afrovibes has grown from a one-day event to a 10-day festival that takes place every year in the autumn in several cities in the Netherlands.
We’re going to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Afrovibes with a special program on Saturday 6 October starting at 22:00 at the Compagnietheater in Amsterdam: Afrovibes x House of Vineyard - A Tribute to miss Thandi. In collaboration with House of Vineyard we present an after party where a world of freedom and expression is created and in which the New York Ballroom culture is celebrated. We open the party with looking back with a few members of the Afrovibes Band and beautiful footage of Raymond with which we celebrate his life and legacy! Then join us for an unforgettable experience of Vogueing, Whacking and the extravagant Ballroom culture! With host Elly Vineyard.