Themba waKashe, chief director of the Ministry of Arts and Culture, is reluctant to identify possible candidates for the most powerful cultural positions in the land — members of the National Arts Council —“because the people will be doing the nominating”. But a glance at the present make-up of the performing arts councils, the current status of various cultural players, not to mention the committees who drafted the Actag reports, gives a pretty clear indication of who will be who in the future cultural zoo.
The council of approximately 20 members will ideally reflect the demographics of the country, and will be made up of players with the necessary experience to judge the merits of funding proposals. Council members may not be government officials or office-bearers of any political party, and will represent the entire range of arts and culture-related activities.
Players include the Market Theatre’s John Kani, who is also on the board of Pact; the Performing Arts Workers’ Equity’s Vanessa Cooke and Japan Mthembu; musician and Pact assistant CEO Hugh Masekela; Newtown Galleries owner Ricky Burnett; artists and arts administrators David Koloane and Bongi Dhlomo; independent filmmaker Jeremy Nathan and film policy-maker Martin Botha; the special adviser to Zwelakhe Sisulu, Melanie Chait; the National Arts Coalition’s Mike van Graan; and the frontrunner in the formulation of the White Paper, Andries Oliphant himself.
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