Amajuba: Like Doves We Rise

I'm going to South Africa this summer (so is Lezlie, another PennGSE blogger) to look at higher education in South Africa. One of my professors is leading a group of 37 students in July to visit three universities and explore the history, culture and landscape of a place I am very unfamilar with.

On Friday night our professor and ten or so of my classmates went to see Amajuba: Like Doves We Rise which was playing at the Annenberg Center on Penn's campus. The show was based on life experiences of the five performers, it was the true story of their own childhoods lived within the Apartheid divisions. They created Amajuba to acknowledge the hope that was present in South Africa's people, even during this awful time period. It helped make me more aware of the realities that were taking place in South Africa during Apartheid.

The stories recounted pain, hunger, violence, and death all seen by these performers as they grew up. It was hard to watch at times and left me wanting to know more stories and to understand more fully. Once I am done with grad school and can read for fun again, I want to read more about apartheid and South Africa. All five of the performers were INCREDIBLY talented. Although the show displayed deep sadness, I was most surprised by how much hope each one of them displayed.

We followed up with a discussion and dessert at a nearby restuarant with my professor, Marybeth Gasman and my classmates. It made me excited for this summer.

Back to reading about Access and Choice in Higher Education; I'm looking forward to having you follow my life this spring.