Bright future for theatre in Bulawayo

07 May, 2017 - 00:05 0 Views

The Sunday Mail

Takudzwa Chihambakwe
EARLIER in the year we carried a story on how Bulawayo’s theatre hub, Theatre for Everyone, was striving to train youngsters to be the stars of tomorrow despite having limited resources to carry out the idea.

A few months into the year, the impact of the efforts of the Nonhlalo Dube-led hub are being felt as youngsters such as 22-year-old Khaliphile Sibanda are now directing their own plays.

The Sunday Mail Leisure caught up with Sibanda and she explained how she got to work with Theatre for Everyone and how their training workshops have changed her life.

“I have benefited a lot from the workshops and trainings received from my mentors, Nonhlalo Dube and Thembelihle Moyo,” said Sibanda.

“Though it was Thembelihle from GITIZ arts organisation that played a greater part in nurturing me in my early days, I have benefited a lot from the platform given to me by Theatre For Everyone, especially during the staging of my first production, ‘It’s Not Gold’.”

Khally, as Sibanda is known in theatre circles, said her confidence was boosted by the success of her first play and she had other projects in the pipeline, including writing productions that the Zimbabwean story in an engaging manner to the youth.

Sibanda and team are working on a musical titled “The Opera Ghost” — an adaptation of “The Phantom of the Opera”.

“The show will be staged on June 9, 2017 at the Academy of Music and before the show we have the pre-launch on May 5 2017 at Alliance Francaise (Bulawayo),” she said. “‘The Opera Ghost’ is about a young lady, Christine, who was promised an Angel of Music by her sick father before he died and instead of an angel came the Opera Ghost who held her hostage till she was rescued by her young lover, Raoul.”

On her love for the stage, she said: “I fell in love with theatre because I discovered that most of the time people do not read books but they love watching the same thing happening through acting. So I decided to tell stories through acting.

“I am seeing theatre becoming equal to any white collar job not just as an art where you perform and leave without any recognition such as a monthly salary.”

Theatre for Everyone head Nonhlalo Dube said she was thrilled to see the fruits of their work.

“It really feels good to see youngsters like Khally blossoming to become playwrights and directors at a young age. It shows that there is a huge potential of having a better industry.

“Equipping playwrights with writing skills means producing quality productions. Quality productions directed by professional directors attract more audiences meaning they will keep coming to the theatre for more,” said Dube.

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