Hip-hop happening and, at times, fabulously "in yer face" - Hip Kulcha is coming your way this weekend.
So clear your decks for Saturday and Sunday and get down to the Playhouse where Kwaito king Mandoza and pop hunk Danny K will be ruling the roost for Hip Kulcha, the Playhouse Company's salute to National Youth Day.
The two-day festival, now in its second year, promises "a sizzling line-up on the main stage, a vibrant cross-cultural dance programme, a drama double bill that has its finger on the social pulse of life in South Africa, as well as searching youth discussions, fun children's activities and free stage events outside the theatre, on Smith Street".
Hip Kulcha's main event will be the concert teaming Mandoza and Danny K, whose recent CD collaboration is currently revving up South Africa's music scene. The concert takes place in the Opera theatre on Saturday at 8.30pm.
Also on the weekend's bill (Saturday at 2.30pm): the Sharp Sharp Dance's performers who revel in traditional "roots" dance and are making waves in the townships using new music and new subjects.
The dancers experiment with the contemporary, mixing and matching the popular, and "Bollywooding their boots off"!
Under the Artistic Directorship of Smeetha Maharaj of Nateshwar Dance Academy (currently celebrating its 25th anniversary) the youthful members of KZN DanceLink "burst onto the stage as cultures connect!"
Sharp Sharp Dance participants include the Hlanganani Traditional Orchestra (Indlamu); Uyaba Dance Company (kwaito); Nateshwar Dance Company and Uyaba Dance Companies (kwaito and Indian Folk dance); Minette De Klerk Dance Academy (Bollywood); Siwela Sonke Dance Company (Gumboot Dancers); God's Golden Acre Dancers (Asimbonanga) and the Mary Ann Salvage Dance Academy.
On the drama side, there will be a double bill of one-act plays presented in the Loft on Saturday at 3pm and Sunday at 3pm and 6pm.
The plays are: Land Ahoy by Dylan Edy and Marc Kay, about seven homeless men living in an Umbilo alleyway they have converted into an imaginary pirate ship.
Performed in a realist style, the script uses humour to tell the story of a group of people adrift in the modern world. By focusing attention on the homeless, ignored by society unless they directly influence us, the play encourages people to accept responsibility for more than just our own individual lives.
This production will be presented in tandem with Vivian Moodley's In Love All By Myself, which explores and gives insight into the psyche of two street women. While this compelling stage work does not provide all the answers, it does pose pertinent questions which stimulate debate. One such question is: How many silent victims are there at your institution?
Also on the this year's Hip Kulcha bill is a Saturday morning youth conference, to be held in the Grand Foyer at 11am. Sunday's roster offers face-painting, clowning and juggling by master of the genre, Aldo Brincat (from 12.30pm), with rap poetry, pantsula and hip-hop on the free stage of The Playhouse Transnet truck in Smith Street (from 11am).
Tickets range from R20 to R75. Booking is through Computicket.