Waterside weekends gets into an African groove

South Norfolk Council’s ‘Waterside Weekends’ series gets into an African groove with song, dance and drumming from Ah Saranah! and Anna Mudeka, Mary-Jane Edgar and Paul Jackson on Saturday (14 August).

And on Saturday and Sunday (14/15 August), visitors will get a chance to enjoy river sculptures on the Chet with Martha Winter and weaving wishes and messages into willow baskets, made on the riverbank by artist Liz McGowan.

14th August, Waveney River Centre 2pm - 4pm Ah Saranah! Anna Mudeka, Mary-Jane Edgar and Paul Jackson The event is a celebration of African song, dance, drumming and superb storytelling. Anna Mudeka is an accomplished musician who will lead the energetic dancing, with colourful costume and African instruments providing a strong rhythmic beat.

Mary-Jane and Paul are skilled word weavers who plan to enthral visitors with African songs and stories gathered from their travels. After that, it’s into the groove with the Mudeka quartet's Afro jazz and reggae fusion beat.

August 14th and 15th Martha Winter and Liz McGowan at Loddon Staithe 10am - 4pm

Martha Winter will be installing a series of pebble sculptures and metallic reed-like forms that will glisten under the surface of the River Chet. She has adapted the idea of windsocks into ‘current socks’ which catch the current as it passes the mill and curves towards the weir. These formations alter during the residency period and visitors can enjoy an aerial view of the created patterns from the riverbank.

Liz McGowan, the lead artist, will be making a container using willow from the trees along the bank. She will be inviting people to add a message or weave a wish into the container, which will be taken down the river to the sea: and on the Monday after the last weekend Liz plans to hire a boat at Yarmouth and cast all the containers made at the previous sites into the sea.

This will be recorded and posted on artists’ web diaries at www.southernbroads.com along with other documentation of the process and an inventory of the containers’ contents. Visitors will be invited to take a ticket for this virtual voyage, log on and watch your wish weave its way out into the water.

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