Ann Eveleth
MBONGENI NGEMA’S musical career has not fallen apart in the midst of the Sarafina II controversy, but the financial uncertainty around the future of the Aids education musical has angered some of his friends in the entertainment industry.
Ngema, whose production company Committed Artists was evicted from its Durban offices last month after Sarafina II’s long-awaited “mystery” donor failed to cover nearly R26 000 in rent arrears, is busy “creating” a new show which is expected to open at the Natal Playhouse at the end of the year.
Johann Zietsman, CEO of The Playhouse Company which runs the Playhouse, said details of Ngema’s new production were still being worked out, but that it was “likely to be choral in nature drawing on the strong choral base in KwaZulu-Natal.
“We’re thinking of something with a strong gospel message,” he said.
In addition, said Zietsman, Ngema’s 1994 musical Mama was continuing to tour internationally and The Playhouse Company, which owns the production, was “beginning to show a net profit, which almost never happens”, he said.
Zietsman said the new choral production — expected to open for Christmas — would fulfill Ngema’s current obligation to “direct, choreograph, or compose” one show annually in his new role as artistic director of the company’s musical theatre department.
Ngema’s contract was renegotiated earlier this year after agreement that his former position as the department’s director “was not ideal for either us or him”, said Zietsman.
“In his old contract, he was also in charge of the administrative and management side of the department. It didn’t allow him the kind of freedom to do the other things he does outside of the Playhouse,” he added.
Zietsman said Ngema no longer had administrative duties, but continues to advise the company on artistic planning issues and is engaged annually in some form of production: “He’s like a visiting professor at a university,” he said.
Zietsman said the controversy around Sarafina II had only “tangentially” affected the Playhouse: “It’s only affected us on a perceptional basis if people think we have something to do with Sarafina, which we don’t …(Ngema) needs to sort himself out with the government, but we have had no problems with him and it hasn’t affected our work.”
Ngema’s Committed Artists, however, appears to be another story. Evicted from its Windermere Road offices last month, the company appears to be in a state of limbo as the controversy rages on. Suppliers say they don’t know where to contact the company to send bills for services and Ngema himself has been keeping a low profile. His office said he was in Johannesburg this week and repeated efforts to contact him were unsuccessful.
Terry Acres, managing director of the Johannesburg- based company which provided sound and lighting equipment to Sarafina II, this week said his company was preparing to write off between R50 000 and R100 000 in debts owed to it in connection with the production.
Decribing Ngema as an “ex-friend” due to the fiasco, Acres said he did not know who to confront about the debt or where to send the bill since the closure of Committed Artist’s offices.
Acres said Pro-Sound had recieved payment in full for equipment it provided in terms of a tender contract to the Health Department, but that “tens of thousands” in oustanding bills for service fees, personnel training and transport had not been paid.
Acres said Pro-Sound had been engaged in an affirmative action effort to train black sound engineers and other technicians to set up, operate and otherwise assist the production, and the money for this training was not paid.
Acres believed the Health Department was at fault as it had “failed to set up an appropriate administrative infrastructure to oversee the production. They should have known that an artist won’t be a good administrator.”
Nevetheless, Acres said he had lost money on the show and Ngema was not his “favourite person at the moment”.
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