Bereits zum siebten Mal kam es im Januar 2023 zu einer Begegnung von Schüler*innen des Carl-Orff-Gymnasiums in Unterschleißheim mit der befreundeten Eersterivier Secondary School, einer Gesamtschule aus einem unterprivilegierten Vorort von Kapstadt in Südafrika kommen.
Am Ende stand die Aufführung eines Theaterstückes zur Gestaltung einer gemeinsamen Zukunft. Die preisgekrönte Partnerschaft der beiden Schulen hat bereits mehrfach bewiesen , dass soziale, ethnische und ökonomische Unterschiede überwunden werden können.
Im Januar 2023 besuchten Zehntklässler*innen und einige Ehemalige und Alumni die Partnerschule , um gemeinsam zu wohnen, zu proben und die eigene Utopie auf die Bühne zu bringen.
Im Zeitraum zwischen dem 23. Juni und 14. Juli ´23 kommt es nun zum Rückbesuch der südafrikanischen Freund*innen und am 5. Juli gibt es eine große Aufführung im Bürgerhaus Unterschleißheim.
KVVK über theater@carl-orff-gym.de oder die Website des Forums:
https://www.forum-unterschleissheim.de/veranstaltungen/detail/maybe.html
Wir hoffen, dass wir mit unserem Austausch die Kraft des Theaters in die weite Welt tragen können – eben dadurch, dass wir zwei Welten miteinander verbinden, und zwar in partnerschaftlicher Planung, mit gleichwertigem Hin- und Rückbesuch (!) als respektvolle Begegnung und Ort gemeinsamen gegenseitigen Lernens.
Wir danken allen Unterstützer:innen und Sponsoren,
Stefanie Höcherl und Michael Blum
Presse
Mehr zur Geschichte des erfolgreichen Austauschs …
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Unser Besuch in Südafrika – Our visit in South Africa – January 2023
von Lina Nägele und Paula Kusterer
What we experienced and will experience in June, when we will meet in Germany, was and will be unique. To be part of this exchange is both an honor and an opportunity. An opportunity to get to know people your age who live on the other side of the world. To play drama together and even get to know a bit of their culture and country. An opportunity I wouldn’t want to miss. Thanks to everyone who made this possible.
13th and 14th of January: Britannia Bay
With a taxi we drove almost four hours through South Africa´s West Coast and got our first impressions. We viewed the beautiful landscape with its animals (we saw antelopes and ostriches!), but also realized many townships and people standing on the highways trying to sell different things. The second we arrived in Britannia Bay we went swimming in the sea. After we had cooked together and had had a nice barbecue dinner, Mrs. and Mr. Markram told us a lot about their country, its problems and the school system and their learners. We fell asleep listening to the ocean.
After an amazing breakfast with fresh local fruit, we headed to the Christian Brothers Centre in Stellenbosch. After visiting the penguin colony in Betty’s Bay, we spent the evening at Mrs. and Mr. Markram’s house and got to know two of the South-African exchange partners, Jasmine and Charlize, and also Benilde who graduated as one of the best in Cape Town. She couldn´t have done it without the help of our exchange program and the befriended Verein “Equal Opportunities for Kids in Cape Town´s townships”.
We started the day with a walk to a nearby market, where we shopped for souvenirs and food. Later and back at the Christian Brothers Centre, the South-African exchange partners arrived one after the other and there were tons of hellos. After everybody arrived, we started to rehearse in separate groups. In the evening we had two performances, one German and one South-African. There was load shedding (South Africa has huge problems providing enough power so the electricity is cut off on purpose for several hours daily to distribute the available amount) and the Germans had to perform outside because it was already getting dark. The sunset, the mountain backdrop and the croaking frogs made this performance unique. I enjoyed playing outside as much as I enjoyed the South-African play.
Monday was dancing day. We drove to the Dylan Lewis sculpture garden in Stellenbosch, and it was just great. We were divided into groups of four, which was a good opportunity to get to know some of the exchange partners better. We created little dances, inspired by the abstract and beautiful sculptures. In the end we showed them to each other under a pavilion, where we went on dancing together. Before we drove back, we had some refreshing drinks, which I think everybody was thankful for. (35°C !!!)
After a nice breakfast we went outside for an intense warm-up including push-ups and cartwheels. The day was full of sweat and exhaustion, but everybody held out bravely. In the end we were all content with how far we had come in such a short period of time. We ended the day relaxing and playing games together, which was awesome.
18th of January: Another day with 12 hours of rehearsals
Again, we started the day with a fun warm-up. At this time, we already knew each other better and playing drama together got more fun and effective. As one big group we worked very hard, especially because we didn’t have much time. After dinner we played volleyball and other games together. We went to bed early to be prepared for the next rehearsal.
19th of January: again … rehearsing
Although a lot of us were a little sick that day, we managed to be productive. In the afternoon we even finished working out the final dance for our piece. After this stressful but funny day, we sat down together to talk about the time we had spent in the camp and what we had accomplished. Then we quickly went to bed to be ready for the next day.
After another wonderful breakfast, we had two run-throughs of our piece coming up. This was the first time we performed our piece completely, so we were all excited! We did well, so we deserved a break and went to town in the afternoon. In Stellenbosch a small historical city tour with Mister Markram awaited us. It ended in a nice pizzeria where we had dinner. Afterwards we strolled a little bit through the city and Mrs. Markram bought us all some ice cream. It was a lovely ending of a lovely day.
Saturday was a packed but awesome day. After breakfast we drove to Cape Town to the District Six Museum, where a contemporary witness of Apartheid´s brutality told us about her past and made most of us cry. Thereupon we drove further through the so-called Bo-Kaap and made a short stop at the colored houses to take many pictures. Afterwards we enjoyed a delicious, packed lunch at the waterfront. Then we went to the Aquarium and watched colorful fish as well as sharks and rays. It was an amazing experience. The third museum of the day was the new Art Gallery where we could admire pictures of different art styles. The highlight of the day was the visit at the Baxter Theater in the evening, where we watched “Auntie Merle”. It was an inspiring and entertaining musical of outstanding quality. So to say a perfect day.
After getting up very early, it was time for us to get back into the cabs and drive along the south coast. After a while one of the cabs broke down and we had to wait for a new one. But that didn’t matter because we could spend the time on the beach, where we didn’t only swim, but also sing and dance. After the new cab arrived, we could continue driving towards Cape Town and Table Mountain. We went up Table Mountain with a gondola and enjoyed the beautiful view before we went back to the center. There, we quickly put on our costumes and had a final rehearsal.
Concerning the fact that it was our first performance we were very satisfied with the result. We still had to improvise a little, but we handled it as a group. Directly after we had received our earned applause, we drove to the impressive Afrikaans Language Monument. After a nice little tour, we strolled through Franschhoek. To complete the day together we had the nicest barbeque dinner.
24th of January: Last performances and sad goodbyes
We performed two times in front of Eersterevier Secondary School´s learners, meaning each time about 500 learners sitting in the hall and watching us closely. The students reacted very much on our play and were very appreciative, so we had a lot of fun. We were thrilled to perform for relatives, friends and former exchange partners in the evening and after we had finished our play it got very emotional. The play was followed by touching speeches. Many of us were crying. I think we also cried because we knew only half of us would return to the Christian Brother Center. It was time to say goodbye… After all of the South Africans were gone, we returned to the camp and spent our last night there.
Let´s go for a reunion in June!
Lina Nägele und Paula Kusterer (10a)
Kooperation mit dem Heiner Janik Haus – JBS am Tower, des KJR München-Land
