With the first round of the Jive Culture Shock klopse competition behind us, we now go into the finale which takes place on Saturday.
The teams are all set to give it their all in this round when the traditional minstrel and Klopse items, namely the Nederlandslied and the English comic song, will be performed.
I caught a glimpse of some of the performances and they are definitely on a whole new level.
The main difference between the usual Klopse moppies we see at the stadiums and the Jive Culture Shock is definitely the indoor setting of the Artscape Theatre.
The lighting adds so much value and lifts each performance to something new.
It also helps that all acts are done with a live band and the tempo of the moppies are slightly slower, and because it’s indoors one hears all the lyrics crystal clear, helping the audience to follow the storylines better.
With regards to the Nederlandslied, you can expect some amazing karingkels that’s fresh on the ear, and one or two moving moments that will make you shed a tear.
The innovative format of the Jive Culture Shock allows for more than one voorsinger on the Nederlandslied, giving more opportunity for young talent to shine, but at the same time presenting a new sound on the ear and visuals on the eye.
I think this online streamed show as a whole is growing in leaps and bounds and these teams are going all out to impress, not just the judges but also the viewing public at home.
This is clear when one sees an expensive sports car being driven on stage as a prop for a moppie to make for a greater visual impact.
The choreography is second to none, with performers being flung into the air at times and entire singpakke moving as if they are back-up dancers on a Michael Jackson tribute show.
Music videos are being recreated live on stage, pushing the boundaries of what they think modern day culture songs should look like.
Even with the Nederlandslied, these performers present visuals to help the audience understand what it is that they are singing about, and it really helps because Nederlands is not a language that we speak as a rule.
Every time a performer comes to play their part in a moppie, they are wearing the perfect costume that suits that character in that moment.
I do feel however that the stories could have been more relevant to our time and that the writers could have put some more thought into the concepts, but in the end, I guess it’s not really about that, it’s about pure entertainment.
And if you actually laugh and feel the need to jol at home while watching, well, then they have succeeded.
But we need to pay more attention to writing because without good writers, our stories will die and never be told properly.
All the lead singers are extremely talented and have learnt the art of telling a story; they’ve also been throwing words into the audience which helps us to catch the punchlines on the moppies better.
Guys, please, support all the teams in the finale of the Jive Culture Shock this coming Saturday and be prepared to be blown away by all the performances.
You will be taken on a magical ride of karingkels and Broadway-styled moppies.
It is difficult to believe that all of this was pieced together by the teams in the heart of a pandemic and it’s clear that they all came to compete for the love of our beautiful culture.
All the teams deserve much praise for their hard work this season and this acknowledgement comes in the form of people buying tickets.
Tickets to the Jive Culture Shock finale are available on Quicket.
dailyvoice@inl.co.za