The month of January is colourful. It holds so much colour, dance, joy and new beginnings. As we get older we realise that there is no real difference between December 31st and January 1st, but we do hold a little hope for a new year. The 2de Nuwejaar celebrations on 2 January 2023 came in with a bang. It was the first in 3 years and the Cape Town Minstrels have been planning this since the beginning of 2022 with the hope that in 2023 they might just not be tamed by COVID. SO many dreams come true on this day – some minstrels had their very first parade and others their last – but what a parade it was.
Artroute had a special interview with a Cape Town minstrel, Ismail Daniels who shared some of his life stories. Growing up in the Bo-Kaap district, he pulled out some images from the 1930s that shows how the Cape Dutch settlements evolved over the years and showing off some of his beautifully designed parade outfits. At the ripe age of sixty he shared in fifty five years’ parades, as he cannot really remember the first five years.
You will find him with his stand across the street of the Bo-Kaap Museum selling Cape Town souvenirs and merchandise. Be sure to make a stop and say hello on your next trip to take colourful profile pictures in Wale and Rose street.
Isfahaan, aged twelve, have been in the minstrels since the age of nine. He carries his ‘voorlopertjie’ title with so much pride. Dancing on ‘Daar kom die Alibama’ with so much passion and well choreographed moves, the stage is set.
I hope that you did not miss sharing in the celebrations this year – if you did, they are already planning the celebrations for 2024. So book it in your diary.
Check out the video here: