Bongeziwe twice in the Western Cape in his upcoming tour. l SUPPLIED
After three years of struggling to persuade the St George's chapel board to allow him to perform, multi- award winning artist Bongeziwe Mabandla got a nod of approval to play the Cape Town leg of his upcoming tour at the St George’s chapel.
Mabandla’s manager, Sevi Spanoudi said it is a dream come true for her and the team she works with to put together a showcase at the timeless St George’s chapel.
“We’ve wanted to put on a show at the cathedral even before working with Bongeziwe. Tying our lifelong dream with Bongeziwe’s vision for the show is an infuse of visual delecacy that will leave audiences awestruck, as the matchless beauty that is inside the cathedral is breathtaking, it’s going to be beautiful,” she said.
The dean of Cape Town, Michael Weeder said over the years, the cathedral has provided a performance space for a diverse range of musicians and vocalists. These include the late Sibongile Khumalo, Kyle Shepherd and others such a Cuban vocal ensemble.
“Cathedrals in previous centuries were the sites of performance space for creatives as there were no substantive distinctive between the secular and spiritual. The music genre of gospel music illustrates how what is deemed spiritual, namely the liberation message of Jesus who loves us, is blended with so-called genres of blues, jazz, R&b and so on,” he said.
Mabandla’s October amaXesha tour follows three sold-out album release shows in Johannesburg and Cape Town in June this year. These gave audiences who were unable to secure tickets for those shows an opportunity to see Mabandla perform his latest album live.
Mabandla will be performing in a nine-date tour together with his producer and creative collaborator, Tiago Correia-Paulo, with the new dates adding to a live schedule for 2023 that has included shows in the UK, Europe and Mexico.
Both Mabandla’s domestic and international shows have drawn rapturous responses from audiences, with critics noting that this set of shows was likely to be the last opportunity to see this globally ascendant artist in any kind of intimate setting.
Mabandla said he was looking forward to implementing all the new changes made from previous tours.
“I am very excited beyond words. We have been talking about them for the last two years so I’m so happy they are finally happening. I’m really very happy. We also have a new member that is joining us on the tour. This is something I am really excited about.
“He is a musician whom we have been trying to work with for a while now. He is finally able to join us on the tour so there really is going to be a big difference,” he said.
Mabandla’s production manager, Itamar Weiss, said the new album “Amaxesha" was more electronic than previous material and turning those sounds to live instruments played on stage was going to be beautiful.
“We have added a new member to the band, Bruno, who is going to make the sound even ‘bigger’. ‘The Joy’, the incredible acapella group from Durban, are joining for some of the shows too.
“The most exciting part is always the creativity. Bongeziwe, Tiago Correia Paulo (co-composer, producer, and musical director on everything Bongeziwe) and our team spend a lot of time debating setlists, visuals, technical details and eventually making those decisions. Announcing the shows and seeing the tickets sell is exciting too,” she said.
Weiss said It has been hard (in some ways) to put the tour shows together, as venues in South Africa are scarce.
“Putting a high standard show in spaces that don't necessarily cater for that is always a challenge. This means we have to compromise and with Bongeziwe's shows compromise is not a word we want to use. A big win for us this tour was getting St George's Cathedral for the Cape Town show. We have been working on getting their board to agree for three years now,” she said.
Mabandla’s manager, Sevi Spanoudi, said Mandla had been hard at work with rehearsals, merchandise, social media content and meetings in preparation for his upcoming tour, and is excited to see the reaction of fans with some of the show’s installations.
“I am excited to see Bongeziwe and ‘The Joy’ on stage together. It is not very often that our artists collaborate for a live show – often those collaborations happen on recordings. This will be something special to witness in person. Also, for people who have not seen him perform “Sisahleleleni” or “Soze”, you are in for a treat,” Spanoudi said.
Mabandla’s previous tours have consistently sold out. Fans are urged to buy their tickets via Quicket. Mabandla is set to perform at the Desi Jones Bar in Stellenbosch on October 20 and St George’s cathedral on October 21.