When actor Troy Mndawe (19) from the rural district of Manyeveni in Mpumalanga moved to Mbombela (Nelspruit) after being awarded a bursary to attend high school at Penryn College, he spoke very little English because his first language is siSwati.
‘It was very difficult, and I was battling with every single subject because of my English,’ Mndawe explains. ‘So, I put my mind to changing this and I did so by watching endless YouTube videos about how to speak English well.’ He matriculated in 2022 and now speaks fluent English.
During his matric year, he applied for the Arts & Culture Trust (ACT) Nyoloha Scholarship Programme (NSP) and out of 89 participants, he reached the finals. ‘One of my teachers paid the R100 registration fee for me and I couldn’t believe that I was selected as there were many talented applicants,’ he says.
The ACT NSP is a partnership between ACT and the Nedbank Arts Affinity, sponsored annually by Nedbank and Sun International, where two winners from the performing, visual or digital arts each receive undergraduate scholarships to the value of R350 000 to study at an arts institution of their choice in South Africa.
Leading up to the awards night in October 2022, 54 of the applicants were selected to attend three months of professional online training and mentorship and 15 finalists were selected from this group.
While Mndawe didn’t win the scholarship, he and two other finalists, Dithabe Mbali and Yolo Mazwai, were subsequently selected by the performing arts trainer and mentor for the ACT NSP, Samantha Peo, to be part of the performance she created for the Hollard’s #Changemakers awards evening in Johannesburg in December 2022. Renowned for her musical theatre and corporate theatre performances as well as productions, Peo put them together with three learners from Kenilworth Secondary School to create a superb performance piece adapted from Irish musician Dermot Kennedy’s song ‘Giants’, localised with a capella singing in isiZulu.
‘When I was asked by Creative Directions to put together the performance, I immediately thought of these three ACT NSP alumni. I get so incredibly excited about new talent., At least 25 of the alumni could have gone through to the finals; they were that good,’ says Peo.
She says her dream is ‘to build up a supportive network of diverse, talented young artists to perform at professional corporate events, functions, gala dinners, awards evenings and wherever else they can. It would be a movement of young talents who have much to say and are just waiting for the opportunity to be seen and heard.’
Mndawe explains that when Peo, whom they call ‘Mom Sam’, called him and asked if he would like to be part of this performance, he asked, ‘Is this real?’ ‘This was my first professional job! It was incredible being part of it and it wasn’t nearly as stressful as the scholarship application process because I didn’t know how I was going to live out my future if I didn’t get the scholarship. I didn’t get the scholarship but then this opportunity followed and I am now on my journey to become the best artist I can be; to tell my story and to be a vehicle for other people’s stories – people who have little say in the world so that their stories can be told.’
He adds that where he is now would not have been possible without Peo. ‘She believed in me when I didn’t,’ he says. ‘She is a mom and a teacher. I didn’t win the scholarship, but she kept my faith up that I have more to offer the world than I think.’
The overall goal of the ACT NSP ‘is to nurture young people in their self-development and respective artforms, as well as to prepare them for the world of work,’ says Tobie Badenhorst, Head of Group Sponsorships and Cause Marketing at Nedbank. ‘If we look at how the group grew during the three-month mentorship, I think we have achieved this.’
ACT Interim CEO, Jessica Denyschen adds. ‘The mentorship also includes people management, entrepreneurship, marketing and communication skills. The process revealed the immense talent and drive of young people from all over South Africa.’
Rapper and dancer Dithabe Mbali (18), originally from East London and now living in Khayelitsha, says: ‘Mom Sam and everyone coordinating the whole mentorship experience were far more than trainers and mentors; they really went out of their way for us. They taught us a whole bunch of stuff that we didn’t know.’
When he recorded videos of his performance, he had to go to his mother’s friend house where they had WiFi. ‘It was difficult singing in another person’s house, but I just went for it.’
He says that he learnt so much during the three months, including from his peers. ‘I learnt a lot about how to better myself as an artist and person. I saw the focus, hard work and dedication of Marang Khwene, the winner of the scholarship. When we were busy with rehearsals, she would constantly refer to her notebook of ideas for her choreography, reinforcing why polishing and repetition of a performance is so important. It inspired me to do the same.’
Performing in the ChangeMaker event was his first professional performance. ‘I truly felt like an artist. ‘Troy and I were flown to Johannesburg and accommodated at a bed and breakfast. It was wonderful sharing the experience with a like-minded individual; we got along well.’ Mbali has since been working on another performance with Peo, once again commissioned by Creative Directions, for a function for the Board of Airline Representatives of South Africa (BARSA) in Cape Town on 10 March 2023.
Yolo Mazwai (19) from Craighall Park in Johannesburg said the professional debut for ChangeMakers was ‘very, very exciting, extremely nerve-wracking and a whole lot of hard work as I’m a perfectionist. I sang and played the guitar in the rendition of ‘Giants’. The message is about the freedom to be who you are and to never stop standing up for what you believe in. The audience was so moved by our performance, they were speechless. It felt like we had changed them in some way.’
This year, Mazwai started studying musical theatre, drama and dance at the Waterfront Theatre School in Cape Town. ‘My family all managed to chip in for my first year as they know how hard I have been auditioning and applying for scholarships. I wasn’t going to stop until I got into this school. I’m finally here and doing a four-year diploma. My day ends at 21:00 most nights as I really need to do well so that I can get funding for my second year and succeed in this very tough industry.’
Speaking about the ACT NSP mentoring, Mazwai says: ‘We did a whole lot of inner work and self-exploration about “Who Am I?” that taught me a lot about myself as a non-binary person. For the scholarship awards night, I performed a monologue about someone transitioning from a female to a male and their fear of the response of coming out.’
Peo explains that central to the mentorship process is a journey of self-discovery, creativity and an honouring of the artist within. ‘It was important to me that we created a safe space to explore the self and deeper life issues through various activities and exercises.
‘The more honest and authentic we can be as people, the more honest and authentic is our art. I know from experience that life imitates art and that the reverse is also true. I knew that once our participants became more aware of themselves as embodied multidimensional beings, they would be able to create believable, multidimensional characters in performance, and develop a strong foundation of trust within themselves before stepping into this tricky, magical and often unpredictable industry.’
Applications for the 2023 ACT NSP are now open for all matriculants with university exemptions and young people between the ages of 17 to 25 wishing to study towards a performing, visual or digital arts degree starting in the 2024 academic year. Applications are on the ACT website at www.act.org.za/nyoloha and they close on 31 March 2023.
Mbali offers this advice for the 2023 applicants: ‘Remember why you are applying and prepare fully; repeat your performance again and again and again. If you haven’t fully prepared, don’t go out, rather stay behind and do the work.’
