Sarafina! and International Mindedness

Nov 1, 2018

It’s November! This is a big month for ARIS!

The ARIS Secondary Performing Arts Department will be presenting its 2nd Annual School Musical, SARAFINA!

SARAFINA! Is a story of a brave, young girl, Sarafina, who started a Student-Led Movement against the Government for legislating Afrikaans as the Language of instruction in schools. This movement has been historically recorded as the Soweto Uprising, which is one of the most notable movements during the Apartheird.

As an IB School, playing Sarafina is all the more significant, as it reflects on Global Citizenship and International Mindedness.

Sarafina is a story of bravery, courage, and resilience and resistance against oppression. It’s a story with major historical significance that evokes power. As we guide our students to be Global Citizens and carry forth the values of International Mindedness, it is imperative to be in touch and know about how the world as we know it today has come to be.

The Apartheid was one of the largest scale politicized oppression systems in history; as youth in a school in Africa, being a part of the story set during the Apartheid and enacting characters who could be their fellow brothers and sisters is an empowering experience for our students. They are not only getting to learn about a major part of African History and its International significance, but also are feeling the emotions of the characters, as they enact it.

Our students, through their Sarafina Experience, have been able to introspect on the interconnectedness of all of our history, and the subsequent shaping of our present today. As our students emote and find out more on the Soweto Uprising through the characters in Sarafina, they are able to make global connections and truly understand and reflect on the significance of a story like Sarafina. Moreover, truly introspect on the sheer capacity of their power as the youth, and their responsibility as global citizens to create a world unlike the one that they are getting ready to enact.

As the date of November 10th nears, our students have been polishing up their craft. As we spoke to their guides in the Performing Arts department, Mr. Wisdom, the Music Director, said that it’s beautiful to see the students’ journey as they have learnt to sing in a completely new language!

It will be Euphoria on stage, he said! Similarly, Mr. Solomon, the Sarafina Director, has proclaimed that this performance will be unlike anything we have ever seen before by our ARIS Students!

Well, we think we speak for the majority when we say that we cannot wait! We imagine our students’ experience through their Sarafina Journey has been unforgettable, not only in the context of the memories they have made, but also the learning and discovery that they have had to do to come into their roles.