Moving beyond play readings, the Kultcha Klub takes on Gladiators, sex and life after death Robert Colman Anyone who’s looking for an intelligent, stimulating and safe one-night stand should try the Wits Downstairs Theatre in Braamfontein – you’ll find a tireless group of artists, who are launching a festival of 10 original South African plays […]

Britain has called for a ban on sales of diamonds from Sierra Leone that, as in Angola, have fuelled the country’s civil war Ewen MacAskill in Antwerp and David Pallister In a small room above the Diamond Bourse in Antwerp, a dealer expressed regret over the mutilations and deaths in the African civil wars in […]

Jazz artist Errol Dyers has a new album, which he says is about who he is and how he speaks to people Thebe Mabanga The Cape is renowned for its laid-back splendour. It provides a perfect setting for artistic inspiration. It also possesses a rich musical heritage honed by generations of Khoisan communities over a […]

ESKOM’s pebble bed nuclear project has formed an international partnership with UK nuclear company British Nuclear Fuels, the Business Day reports. BNF is taking an estimated 20% stake in the scheme for about R100-million. The project is being led by Eskom, which has a 30% stake in it, and the Industrial Development Corporation, which has […]

divisions’ Jubie Matlou and Sechaba ka Nkosi The long-awaited probe into the restructuring of the SABC has raised the possibility of privatising the corporation’s news divisions. The report by consultants Gemini, which was presented to the SABC board this week, recommends that an “ideal SABC news service would fully exploit business opportunities (that is, privatisation)”. […]

Tracey Naughton Currently showing in Pretoria is an exhibition of Australian Aboriginal art owned by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Some may question this showcasing of Aboriginal culture, titled Seasons of the Kunwinjku, in the context of the Australian prime minister’s reluctance to offer an official apology for the effects of history […]

Rupert Neethling A new United States phenomenon called “account aggregation” may well become the web’s next big thing. According to a recent report, account aggregation enables users to monitor their insurance balances, credit cards, bank or brokerage statements and even e-mail accounts at the same time and in the same place. However, before such services […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Harare | Friday 11.30am. ZIMBABWE’s white farmers will not be intimidated by President Robert Mugabe’s threats against them, a union farming official said on Friday, after Mugabe warned white farmers that they will die if they try to resist land invasions. At the same time political opponents say the president’s fighting talk will […]

In his exhibition with his partner Claire de Jong, Wayne Barker endeavours to be both sacrificial offering and high priest at the altar of truth Alex Sudheim Several years ago, on a cold winter’s night in downtown Johannesburg, I spent a few nervous hours with the vanguard of the South African avant-garde at a place […]

Brett Davidson LIFESTYLE At 5pm, Jo Stein heads for De Waal Park, with her dog, Lola – a cute cross- Staffie-Jack Russell. “Lola likes the park best,” she says. “More than the beach, more than the mountain. This is where all her friends are.” The park, nestled on the lower slopes of Table Mountain, is […]