Makhanda’s Masterpiece: The National Arts Festival 2025

From 26 June to 6 July 2025, Makhanda will again become a temporary capital of South African creativity. This small Eastern Cape city transforms into a dynamic meeting ground for artists, audiences, and ideas every winter.

The National Arts Festival (NAF), now in its 51st year, sets the stage for bold expression, experimentation, and conversation across disciplines and generations.

What began in 1974 as the Grahamstown Arts Festival has grown into the longest-running multi-arts festival in Southern Africa. It was renamed in 2002 and has since remained a cultural constant through decades of social change, economic shifts, and even a global pandemic.

Through it all, the Festival has served as a mirror to the country’s complex realities and a reminder of the arts’ role in asking questions, pushing back, and holding space for new ways of seeing.

What is the Purpose of The National Arts Festival?

The National Arts Festival exists to support and showcase a wide range of creative voices, offering a platform for artistic expression, experimentation, and dialogue. It brings together performers, visual artists, writers, and audiences to engage with work that reflects South Africa’s cultural, social, and political realities.

The Festival promotes freedom of expression, fosters innovation, and plays a vital role in sustaining the arts economy while creating space for emerging and established artists to share their stories.

Makhanda, in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, has been the Festival’s home since its inception. Formerly known as Grahamstown, the city carries a layered history — from colonial military roots to its role as a centre of education and activism. Today, it’s a university town with cultural significance and ongoing challenges.

The Festival doesn’t exist outside of this context — it draws from it. Art here is in direct conversation with the town’s past and present, and that makes the experience more immediate, relevant, and lasting.

A Festival That Stretches Across Disciplines

The 2025 programme continues the Festival’s tradition of mixing genres, formats, and perspectives. Theatre, visual art, music, dance, film, comedy, and magic are all part of the line-up.

This year’s visual arts programme features Black Sash: Seven Stories Over Seven Decades, a powerful look at protest and civic action across South Africa’s past and present. Nature is Louder, an ongoing street art initiative, returns with new murals that speak to the environment and memory through striking public interventions.

There’s also The Cartography of Dreams II, which invites artists to trace personal and collective memories through layered, conceptual works.

On stage, you’ll find dance-driven performances like Izithukuthuku, a fierce meditation on labour and loss, and Die Een Wat Bly, a tender narrative of grief and memory through the lens of a mother-son relationship.

Ballet fans can look out for SALT by Cape Ballet Africa — a triple bill of new choreography with serious creative pedigree. There’s also musical theatre, physical storytelling, performance art, spoken word, and productions that defy classification entirely.

In music, PentaFusion’s #Time offers a jazz-fusion take on temporality, while Ingoma yoHadi dives deep into the sonic history of the Xhosa bow harp. Comedy lovers can catch ADHD, the Bottle and Me, a solo show that navigates recovery with sharp wit and vulnerability. Brendon Peel’s ALAKAZAM! brings magic and mentalism back to the Festival for a fifteenth year.

It’s a lot — intentionally so. There’s no single theme, no neat thread tying it all together. What you’ll find instead are connections that emerge as you move from venue to venue, performance to performance.

Being There

The Festival spreads across Makhanda’s schools, theatres, halls, and public spaces. Most venues are within walking distance of each other, making it easy to go from a puppet show to an art exhibit to a string quartet in a single afternoon.

Expect pop-up stalls, food trucks, late-night gigs, and spontaneous performances across town as the city fills with artists, audiences, and energy.

Opposite the Arch, on the corner of High and Somerset Streets, has become a favourite Festival stop — a restored 1830s building turned into a hub of food, shopping, and social buzz.

The Barista is known for its locally roasted coffee and strong focus on African origins — ideal for a quick takeaway or catching up with friends between shows. Right next door, Major Fraser’s serves hearty meals and local drinks in a laid-back, creative space. It’s busy from lunch to late-night and a favourite for post-performance meetups.

Hello Gorgeous Gifts is worth a stop. The shop carries a range of quality gifts and homeware — everything from Maxwell & Williams ceramics to Ash & Mill bath products and small-batch treats. It’s great for something practical or a little indulgent.

Don’t miss Lola’s Dessert Bar, popular for gelato, waffles, and over-the-top milkshakes. It’s casual, lively, and always buzzing — a solid pick for a sugar break between venues.

For a quieter pause, Serenity Day Spa offers skincare and beauty treatments in a calm, professional setting. Run by a local brother-sister team, they focus on facials, peels, waxing, nails, and massage,

While known for institutions like Rhodes University, Makhanda also contends with loadshedding and water shortages. The Oyster Collection’s properties have adapted with alternative power and water-saving systems, and visitors are encouraged to check these details when booking.

Why The National Arts Festival Matters

The National Arts Festival is one of the most vital cultural spaces in the country. It has outlived political systems, outlasted funding droughts, and adapted to changing audiences. It doesn’t try to chase trends, it sets the tone by creating space for artists to test, question, and reflect.

It also gives audiences something rare: the chance to spend time with work that isn’t trying to please everyone. The Festival has always invited discomfort, surprise, laughter, and reflection, often on the same day.

Makhanda in late June isn’t a holiday destination. It’s a cultural shift packed into ten days, across one city, with hundreds of voices adding their notes to the national story.

Tickets are available online, with updated schedules and venue info published daily on the official website. Booking ahead is recommended, as popular shows tend to sell out quickly.

Accommodation in Makhanda by The Oyster Collection

At The Oyster Collection, we offer a selection of premium stays in Makhanda, each thoughtfully located and well-suited for National Arts Festival visitors, school events, or weekend getaways.

Visitors are encouraged to plan ahead, especially with the reality of loadshedding and the region’s ongoing water constraints. Choosing accommodation with backup power and sustainable water systems is a smart move.

The Milner

The Milner is our 4-star luxury guest house, close to Makhanda’s vibrant city centre yet just far enough to offer a peaceful retreat. This renovated Victorian property features seven generously sized suites, each with an extra-length king-sized bed, spacious bathrooms, and a desk with ample plug points.

Several rooms include freestanding baths, cosy fireplaces, and private courtyards or verandas. Guests can enjoy a hearty home-cooked breakfast, relax in the shared lounge or sunroom, and unwind in the landscaped garden. The Milner is ideally positioned for access to local schools, festival venues, and cultural landmarks.

8A Grahamstown

8A offers a quiet stay near the end of a leafy cul-de-sac, just minutes from Makhanda’s centre. The guest house features beautifully appointed rooms, inviting lounge areas, and an outdoor terrace with scenic views of the town.

It’s an excellent choice for guests who value calm surroundings with quick access to restaurants, events, and schools. Our team is on hand to ensure your stay is as comfortable and welcoming as possible.

Pleasance Apartment

Pleasance Apartment is part of our Owner’s Villas collection — a secure, fully serviced two-bedroom unit designed for guests seeking privacy and independence. Located next to The Highlander and near St. Andrew’s College, the apartment includes a fully equipped kitchen, open-plan living area, work-from-home desk, air conditioning, and a private patio ideal for relaxed afternoons.

Daily housekeeping is included, and our reservations team is available to assist with local recommendations, dining options, and logistics. Pleasance is a convenient base for families, professionals, or anyone visiting schools or events in the area.