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Festival programme

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Festival programme

The arts coming together at the UFS

04 October 2022 | Story Gerda-Marié van Rooyen | Photo Sonia Small

UFS Drama — With the short holiday break for students, the University of the Free State Bloemfontein Campus turns into a gathering place for artists, intellectuals, and those interested in culture. The UFS is once again hosting the annual Vrystaat Arts Festival.

It is holiday break for students and during this short recess period, the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus has been transformed into a flourishing destination for the arts. The UFS is once again hosting the annual Vrystaat Arts Festival.

The festival started on Sunday 2 October 2022 with a magical First Nations opening at Mooimeisiesfontein. This ceremony was in recognition of the Khoisan as traditional inhabitants of our land. Following the motto: ‘One festival, many stories’, Mark Anthony Dobson, festival organiser, says this festival is open for all. “I can’t imagine having this arts festival anywhere else. Having the UFS host the festival is wonderful,” says Dobson.

Confirming the festival’s appreciation for inclusion, 130 students from different faculties and departments are being employed on an ad hoc basis this week. “This even allows for a medical student to work backstage. They only had to be willing, able, and their schedules had to allow it,” explains Dobson about the criteria used.

Attendees can look forward to a wide variety of productions to be seen on the much-acclaimed, high-quality stages on campus. Several drama students will show their talent in the production Die kat is uit die sak (The cat is out of the bag) under the direction of UFS Drama and Theatre Arts Lecturer, Thys Heydenrych.

Staying true to the nature of a university as a space for intellectual exchange, there will be various discussions between academics, influencers, businesspeople, and journalists. One such discussion is ‘A look into the future of South Africa’, which is part of the Thought-Leader Series. Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS, will facilitate this discussion in the Albert Wessels Auditorium on 6 October at 10:00. Guests include Moeletsi Mbeki, Deputy Chairperson of the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA); Pieter du Toit, Assistant Editor: In-depth news at News24; and Dr Mareve Biljohn, Head of the Department of Public Administration and Management at the

UFS.

For those looking to buy some vibrant art or enjoy the feeling of the festival, bring some money or remember your bank card to enjoy the craft market that is set to open on Tuesday 4 October 2022. Some stalls and art exhibitions will be held in residences and various buildings on campus. Those who love visual arts will be rejoiced to hear that entry for some exhibitions are free, such as the Beeldspraak exhibition hosted in the Centenary Building. Bookworms can look forward to various book discussions and launches during the week of festivities, while diverse musicians will steal the limelight at the Blêrkas.

A day pass is R20 per person, and children under five get free admission. An average of 3000 visitors is expected daily. Visitors can enjoy the arts with the reassuring thought that the UFS Protection Services, together with members of the SAPS and a private security company, will keep an eye on everyone’s safety.

The full festival programme is available here

News Archive

Another boost for sport at the UFS

2005-10-13

A contract formalizing the appointment of Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd was signed by Prof Verschoor and Mr Morne du Plessis in the historic Main Building of the UFS Bloemfontein campus.

The University of the Free State (UFS) has officially appointed Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd, which has former Springbok rugby captain Morné du Plessis as managing director, to manage its Centre for Exercise and Sport Science Services (CESSS) on the Bloemfontein campus.

According to Prof Teuns Verschoor, Vice-Rector: Academic Operations, the appointment of Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd is another step in the implementation of the UFS’s wide-ranging sport strategy to improve sport facilities and elevate formerly marginalized sports such as soccer, hockey, netball, tennis etc.

Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd is the manager of the Sports Science Institute of South Africa and coordinates and manages the national basketball high-performance programme of SA Basketball, as well as the Boxing Academy on behalf of Boxing South Africa.

“It is also actively involved with the sports plans of several tertiary institutions like that of the University of Johannesburg and the University of Stellenbosch,” said Prof Verschoor.

“Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd was also appointed by the Ministry of Sport and Recreation to manage the allocation of sports codes to high-performance centres and to oversee the allocation of monies received from the National Lottery to these centres – this includes the CESSS at the UFS,” Prof Verschoor added.

In unfolding its national sports plan, the Ministry of Sport and Recreation has already identified the UFS-based CESSS as the high-performance testing centre for the national basketball teams whilst the national boxing teams are also earmarked to be trained at the UFS.

“We are glad to be associated with a company of this stature and look forward to work with them in the further development of sports at the UFS,” said Prof Verschoor.

According to Prof Verschoor, the CESSS will act as a centralised body that is responsible for the coordination and management of joint initiatives between professional service providers, research projects and KovsieSport.

“The centre will also coordinate and manage joint initiatives between various academic programmes in different academic subject fields such as sports medicine, bio kinetics, physiotherapy, dietetics, etc. ,” said Prof Verschoor.

These initiatives will help the UFS to become a centre and catalyst of sports development, to become internationally recognised in the field of exercise and sports science research and to become a centre for high quality sports performance enhancement.

Some of the objectives of the CESSS are:

To provide sports science services like to athletes, students, the general public and other stakeholders including certain national sport teams.
To provide the necessary teaching and training facilities and internship opportunities for UFS students in sports related fields of study will also be provided by the centre like human movement science.
To present skills-transfer programmes directed at the broader community like development of skills in various sporting codes.
To continue and extend the current chronic risk reversal programmes presented by the Department of Human Movement Science such as obesity management, cardiac rehabilitation and other lifestyle related conditions.

The centre was founded in 2003 and was until now managed by Dr Louis Holtzhausen, from Kovsie Health and a consultant, Dr Gary Vorster.

A contract formalizing the appointment of Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd was signed today by Prof Verschoor and Mr Morne du Plessis in the historic Main Building of the UFS Bloemfontein campus.

The manager of the centre appointed by Sports Plan (Pty) Ltd is Mr Charles Store, an alumnus of the UFS, previously employed at the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town and by the SANDF at 3 Military Hospital, Bloemfontein.

Media release
Issued by: Anton Fisher
Director: Strategic Communication
072-207-8334
12 October 2005

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