Jazz festival a no-show
PARKVIEW – Avid jazz fans were highly disappointed to find out that the annual Jazz On the Lake Festival, held every spring at Zoo Lake, was relocated to James and Ethel Gray Park in Melrose without much, if any, prior notice.
The event was scheduled for 6 September and has been hosted at Zoo Lake for the last decade, thus Parkview resident, Paulina Nboweni, was looking forward to the event at Zoo Lake, which she very much loves attending.
However, when Nboweni, just like countless others, arrived at Zoo Lake for the festival where the likes of well-known African performer Angelique Kidjo was set to appear, the park grounds stood empty, much to event-goers dismay.
“There was nothing,” said Nboweni.
“No signs saying it had been moved or what happened to the festival. There was just nothing.”
As it turned out, Zoo Lake was apparently double booked that day. The Juma Urban Mountain Bike Adventure was set to take place at the lake that weekend but, unfortunately, had to be cancelled due to heavy rainfall.
Claire Pacariz, representative of Joburg City Theatres, who was approached by city council to host the festival this year, responded to the confusion caused by the relocation by stating that the entity was keen to explore new venues around Joburg, as well as its natural assets, including the various parks that were under utilised by a diverse section of Joburg residents.
“There was a conflicting event, the Mountain Bike challenge, scheduled for the area around Zoo Lake, so if both events had to have taken place at the same time, there would’ve been more of a problem for Jazz On The Lake and caused considerable inconvenience for the jazz lovers – more than what was actually experienced by the move,” Pacariz explained.
“There were radio campaigns on Jozi FM, Kaya FM and Metro FM. We also had adverts in The Star Tonight, Mail & Guardian, Sowetan, Saturday Star and City Press newspapers [to notify event-goers].”
Pacariz would like to reassure the public that Jazz On the Lake will return to its original venue next year, and the city council said they would make sure this confusion never happens again.
“The plan is to go back to Zoo Lake next year, and the City of Joburg has already booked the park,” Pacariz concluded.
Details: www.arts-alive.co.za
