Echappées Belles, a French weekly television journey and discovery documentary, will be in Namibia next week to film some Namibian cultural history and must-see places through the help of emblematic local personalities, one being dancer Stanley Mareka and his Equipped Dance Academy crew.

French journalist Félice Gaudillate will be facilitating the filming, which is due to take place from 10 to 20 November 2021. The 90 minutes-long show is watched by an average one million viewers every Saturday across France.

“This programme aims to discover the history of a country or a region through emblematic personalities and the discovery of must-see places. To do this, the programme is punctuated with short documentaries but also with scenes filmed. The programme is the presenter’s (French journalist Sophie Jovil) real immersion into the daily life of the people she meets throughout her journey,” shared Gaudillate.

She told VIBEZ! this show enables French viewers to understand the area, its culture, current events and inhabitants. 

“We forecast to go to Sossusvlei for a hot air ballooning tour and to discover Deadvlei. Then we head to Windhoek and follow one of our main emblematic personalities (not disclosed yet) in his daily life, and then follow Stanley Mareka for a day in Windhoek. We will visit Etosha for a safari and a research centre nearby. Finally, we will get to Swakopmund for a bicycle ride in the city centre and Sandwich Harbour and end the journey in a small village around Swakopmund,” said Gaudillate.
Mareka told VIBEZ! he is grateful, honoured and “beyond excited” to be hosting the team. 

They will host the film crew at the Jan Jonker Afrikaner Secondary School, where he has his dancing academy; take them to a soup kitchen; and show them street performances with cultural diversity.

“The ranking of the show means Namibian tourism attractions will gain some exposure. The tourism industry has been heavily affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, and we are here to help in whatever way we can,” shared Mareka.

The theoretical live stage performer said he too lost dancers because of the pandemic, as the responsibility to cater for them and train them drained him financially, making it difficult to stay afloat. 

“Once there is a supporting board, I can focus on the groundwork of creativity and innovative ideas,” he said. - psiririka@nepc.com.na