All set for Malawi summer gala at Livingstonia Beach
For fun seekers in the central region, there is no place to be this weekend than the lakeshore district of Salima, where Sunbird Livingstonia Beach will be hosting the Summer Time Gala.
One of the major entertainment events this summer, the gala which will be happening on Saturday, will bring together musicians, fashionistas, athletes and the fans to a fun-filled weekend along the waters of Lake Malawi.
The gala has been organised to provide an alternative experience to that generic to widely popular events by merging the best elements of these events whilst presenting them in a way that is new, according to Talumba Chirwa of Redspot.
“We’re creating a platform for artists across different disciplines to appreciate each other and to be appreciated by others concurrently.
“It is our hope that in so doing not only will we support local industry, but that we will inspire Malawians everywhere to embrace creativity, diversity and excellence,” Chirwa told Nyasa Times.
Family Fun
Opening the event in the morning will be a DStv family day, where sign up on the spot activities such as tug of war, apple picking contest, three legged egg race, jumping castles and other fun games for the family will be running.
A first ever held social flaye/mila tournament will be held at the event. Testing mothers and children in their skills at a well known African game of catch ball in Malawi known as ‘Flaye’. Families and friends can organize teams at the venue and participate.
The beach sand will be utilized to optimize on the environment and match teams against each other for a version of flaye known as mila. Prizes and give aways will be awarded to winning teams.
Dances
Traditional dances, such as Beni, Malipenga and Gule wamkulu will be performed by dance troops from the local community. They will be performed at the opening of the day and at the closing of the Arts exhibition as integral pieces of the program and as acknowledgement of Malawi’s artistic heritage.
Choral Music
The popular and Lilongwe based Great Angels Choir shall also be gracing the stage with their presentation during the arts exhibition. They are expected to make a 45-minute showing at full choir member capacity.
Fashion
The arts exhibition will feature a fashion show, showcasing renowned designer Cathy Kamthuzi’s new line of summer items accompanied by a shop of a limited supply of some of her coveted works for enthusiasts.
The fashion show will take place in the afternoon of Saturday beginning at 3:00pm. The items showcased by a parade of some of Malawi’s top models will be new and exclusive.
“I’m so excited to showcase my pieces at the gala and I can’t wait to give the people the best of Cathy Kay. It’s not just about fashion but style,” she said in an interview.
The Blantyre-based designer will have a collection of 20 new pieces that include summer dresses, shorts, tops, skirts, sunglasses, bags, sunhats and others.
Sport
The sports event will feature a Beach Soccer tournament between 6 teams, a Beach Volley Ball tournament between 4 teams of four, organized by Volleyball Association of Malawi. Prizes sponsored by Carlsberg will be taken by victors.
Also expected to take place will be the game of Taekwondo, which will feature demonstrations from Malawi’s very own Olympic Certified National Taekwondo coach and KJD Inter Africa Taekwondo championship gold medallist Lovemore Masinga and his eight-man and two kids strong team of black belts from the National Taekwondo Association of Malawi.
And courtesy of MultiChoice Malawi, DStv will be beaming the EPL game between Arsenal and Chelsea on a big screen TV by the beach.
Beach Party
Finally the day will be concluded with an all night music bash (accompanied by a bonfire) featuring the performances by the country’s reggae giants the Black Missionaries, singers Dan Lu, Maskal and Armstrong as well as some of the country’s top DJs from Lilongwe and Blantyre’s most popular radio stations such as Power101 and Galaxy Fm.
Fresh from his European trip in Ireland, where he attended the Ireland African Music Awards and performed in Dublin, Maskal said he was ready for his first show home after his return.
“I’m looking for nothing but the best. There’s a lot that I learnt in Ireland and fans should expected a more energetic and matured Maskal,” said the artist, who is expected to dish out his latest singles ‘Zili Ndi Iwe’ and ‘Usatope’.
Tickets to the event can be purchased or pre-booked at K2,800 cash at Steers in Blantyre and Lilongwe and any Sunbird Hotel in Blantyre and Lilongwe as well as Livingstonia Beach Hotel. Those with National Bank of Malawi accounts can buy the tickets via Visa Cards at K2,500.
