Hey Hillbrow! Come Out To Play—The Streets Are Calling
The Windybrow Arts Centre, a division of The Market Theatre Foundation, and its partners are proud to present the sixth iteration of its annual parade, Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala!
Fun, joy and creative energies are set to fill the inner-city of Jo’burg this Africa Month as Hey Hillbrow! splashes the neighbourhood with colourful visuals and alters the soundscape with exciting frequencies. The parade, which cuts through Hillbrow and Doornfontein, takes place on 24 May 2025. It starts at 10am from The Windybrow Arts Centre, followed by a music concert featuring Thamsanqa Vuthela Band, Mozambique’s The Dizzy Brains and Styles Da Deejay of The Creators Room.
Launched in 2017, Hey Hillbrow! is a celebration of the possibilities that public performance brings to public space—to spread energy, laughter, surprise and provocation, and to make visible the wonderful work that several organisations and individuals have continued to do in impacting inner-city communities and spaces. It is once again curated by Tamzyn Botha, alongside Daniel Buckland and The Windybrow Arts Centre.
Hey Hillbrow! is a collaboration between The Windybrow Arts Centre and likeminded local youth organisations: Dlala Nje, Shade, Dlamini Foundation, Johannesburg Society for the Blind, Innovation of Excellence, Lefika La Phodiso, Fight with Insight and MES. Again, the parade is proud to have favourites, the Ezase Vaal Brass Band, returning to one of Jo’burg’s most anticipated playdates for an unforgettable performance. The brass band will sonically lead and weave the crowd through worlds upon the parade.
Another highlight for this iteration is The Cirk, a descending razzle joining the parade from the sky. African Reclaimers Organisation continues to supply art and costumes created from waste, as well as waste reclaimer bag forms. These green creations make up the visual language of the entire parade, paying homage to the peripheral purveyors themselves and encouraging environmentally healthy practices.
According to Gerard Bester, Head of The Windybrow Arts Centre, Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala! highlights the creative abilities of young people in the inner-city of Jo’burg, while pricking at the conscience of authorities to make the city a better place for all.
“The parade offers a moment of awe and wonderment for young people living in the sometimes tortured but culturally rich city of Johannesburg. It further celebrates the talents and creative vibrancy of young people, bringing joy and surprise to residents and visitors on the streets and balconies of Hillbrow. This year promises even more wonder and entanglement as we move through the streets as portals into the past, the future and the now,” Bester says.
The parade is more than just a mystical adventure. Beyond the thrill of the moment, it aims to spotlight the resilience, creativity, humanity and complexity of inner-city youth, while transforming the often high-risk area into a fun-filled playground. For once, their gaze at the weathered buildings around them sparkles with possibilities as they actively participate in reimagining the aesthetic of their neighbourhood.
Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala! was inspired by the life of Jo’burg public art super-heroine, the late Lesley Perkes, who had dreams for the inner city place which others have continued to manifest. The organisers are therefore deeply grateful for the generous support from the following sponsors: Ekhaya CID, Badboys Security, Hillbrow Police, Assitej South Africa, CCBSA, Joburg Photowalkers, the City of Johannesburg, Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, and our media partner Johannesburg in your Pocket.
ENDS.
The Market Theatre Foundation is an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.
For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at the Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.
