On the 28th of November, we (and that means you) get to roll out our desert experiment in an urban area, for the first time! Yep – it’s called Streetopia, and it’ll consist of filling the streets of Observatory, Cape Town, with art, costume, performance, mutant vehicles and a whole lot more.

To bring it all together, we’re collaborating with local organisation such as the Observatory Civic Association, OBSID and artists and residents from the area – as well as volunteers from across our community. With this kind of broad participation, there’s a bunch of activities taking place on the day – and you’re invited to get involved in any way that you’d like to.

Here’s a snapshot of the content of the event thus far:

On the village green:
– Large-scale AfrikaBurn art will be exhibited
– Silent Disco (completely and utterly silent)
– Speaker’s Corner (anyone’s invited to step up)
– Bishop Loon of Tankwa Town will host a Purple Wedding (16:00)

On Lower Main Rd (between Station & Trill Rds):
– Buskers (4 small sound systems)
– Marching band – eMzantsi Carnival
– Mutant Vehicles (art cars) will be displayed

Elsewhere in Obs on the day:
– Sweet Love Cinema
– The Mantis Project will walk the mantis
– The Unknown Dance Crew from eMzantsi Carnival
– Dancing Ostriches courtesy of Susan De Moyencourt Ballet School
– Participating art studios open for the day

General info:
– Costume and dressing up is encouraged
– It will be a Leave No Trace event
– AfrikaBurn Rangers in attendance on the day
– Gifting encouraged from both residents and business owners
– Wayfinding signage to enable easy navigation

Streetopia is all about Observatory reclaiming its streets, and the possibilities are endless.

Here are some ideas to inspire you to step up and participate:
– deliver a speech about the art of growing bonsai vygies
– demonstrate that nifty DIY solar laptop you built
– tapdance to Ma Brrr’s ‘Weekend Special’ in a tutu
– hand out homemade koesusters
– set up an impromptu silver service dinner for one
– mime the Constitution

As always, with any event related to AfrikaBurn, there are ways you can get involved – and one the best would be to volunteer on the day, which you can do in various ways:

Art Assistants & General event support: http://goo.gl/e2lBWc

Make a scene, create a happening or do that thing you love – the day’s activities really are up to you – so if you have ideas or activities you’d like to contribute, please email [email protected]

If you’d like to see that latest updates and find out more, head to the Streetopia page on Facebook.