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GREAT BRAK RIVER NEWS -  Great Brak River poet Lluyle Arendse recently returned from a weekend workshop where he learnt new skills and poetry styles that he hopes to share with the wider Mossel Bay community. 

A few months ago, the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports issued a call for creatives, including writers, poets, actors, singers and rappers, to participate in its Literary Creative Wave, held in Melkbosstrand, Cape Town, earlier this month.

At the weekend-long workshop, isiXhosa, English and Afrikaans writers and performers could express their identities, cultures and lived experiences through written and spoken words.

It also gave participants a chance to showcase their talents, connect and network, and contribute to the preservation of literary and oral traditions.

Arendse responded to the call and was delighted to learn he had been selected, the only writer chosen from the greater Mossel Bay area. He travelled to Cape Town on 9 October with several other Garden Route writers.

Arendse said 20 to 25 people from across the Western Cape attended the workshop, where they benefitted from the expertise of programme facilitators, including renowned playwright, storyteller, performance poet, actor and director Willem Fransman Jr, and well-known actor, playwright, theatre director and poet Lwanda Sindaphi.

Watch Arendse perform his spoken poem:

The programme began as soon as they arrived in Melkbosstrand, initially focusing on the art of writing poetry and improving imagery. Cape culture was also explored.

Arendse said the workshops alternated between isiXhosa, Afrikaans and English to accommodate all attendees and allow them to appreciate one another's languages.

Fransman reviewed some of the participants' previous poems and written work, offering valuable feedback. Sindaphi then focused on performance poetry and expressing oneself with your whole being. "This woke something up in me," said Arendse.

At the end of the workshop, participants put what they had learnt into practice by performing poems under the theme 'Looking Through the Window'.

Lluyle Arendse at Melkbosstrand during the Literary Creative Wave. Photos: Supplied

"Everyone's poems were so different and so beautiful. Everyone was so brilliant," Arendse said. "The biggest takeaway for me was learning how to perform poetry. I have done readings of my poetry, but those weren't performances. I feel like I tapped into something during the workshop, and it is something I need to explore."

Arendse said he planned to apply what he had learnt to his existing work and practise his new skills so he could help teach others in the community and improve their writing.

He said he was still in contact with some of the other attendees and was excited about the prospect of another get-together and possible future collaborations. 

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