The Sunday Mail
Linda Gabriel
The closure of the Book Café earlier this year has left a huge dent on the arts scene which has led to various sections of the industry suffering.
This institution had become the poetry hub of Harare and since closing its doors, many poets except a few, have been out in the cold without a venue to practice their craft. Among the poets who have not been deterred by the Book Café’s closure is Linda Gabriel, who has been pushing her brand to greater heights.
Innovation and passion have been the key ingredients in her quest to stay relevant and this has led to the opening of other avenues from which she is taking her art to the people.
From invading art galleries and collaborating with visual artistes to securing a residency at a chic restaurant, Gabriel is showing no signs of slowing down.
Having cemented a relationship with First Floor Art Gallery, Gabriel has staged shows alongside several visual artistes, reinforcing the themes being exhibited with her sensational poetry.
She recently collaborated with Mavis Tauzeni during her “Eve’s Diaries” exhibition, a union which attracted a full house at the gallery.
Since June 23, Tuesday nights have not been the same at Maestro, with the poet bringing in a different vibe and ambience to the restaurant. She has also been using her slot to promote upcoming young artistes who she had been sharing the stage with.
The likes of Aggabu Nyabinde, Momo Size, Younique and talented keyboardist MacDee have featured at these poetry sessions. Combining spoken word, music and other arts genres, the “One on One with Linda Gabriel: Poetry and Conversations” sessions have given poetry lovers something to smile about.
Another interesting element of these sessions is that after the artistes have finished performing, there is a question and answer segment on which there is personal engagement between patrons and the acts. Individuals who may not be well versed in poetry will get the opportunity to ask the poet to explain her recitals and to highlight their meanings.
Gabriel is not new to collaborations, having shared the stage with several renowned international acts.
Some of the artistes she has worked with include Phillippa Yaa de Villiers, Samantha Thornhill, Natalia Molebatsi, Akiko Nakamura and Khanyi Magubane, among others. Provided there is proper funding for her initiatives, she is planning on inviting poets from other countries who she has been in contact with.
The Sunday Mail Leisure caught up with Gabriel on the side-lines of her show at Maestro last week.
“I have been trying to keep the brand alive because if I stay quiet, I will cease to exist as an artiste. I have to be active to keep my name visible rather than sitting back and thinking that shows will come looking for me,” she said.
After securing a residency for acts, she is now looking for ways to spread her wings.
“One of the reasons why I came up with the idea of staging shows here is because I have always wanted to be like a resident poet. It is a concept that I had not seen here in Zimbabwe.”
She went on to talk about the power of collaboration (dub-poet) and the reason behind bringing other artistes on board.
“Collaborations brings a different feel you see, for instance during my last show. I was performing with Aggabu Nyabinde, Bob Nyabinde’s son and we managed to create a different vibe.
“On the other hand, these collaborations are also starting to give room to other artistes who are looking for space to showcase their work because this is not just about me but we should also take note of other artistes as well.”
Gabriel believes that the country does not have a poetry industry because of several factors.
“I don’t think we have an industry because an industry is supposed to sustain itself because I don’t think I should be relying on other projects to sustain my poetry. If it was an industry, I would be able to pay my bills and survive on poetry alone.”
She has not only mastered the art of poetry but also possesses the gift of acting.
“I have a one-woman play, ‘So You Think You Know Me’ which I recently took to Bulawayo.
“We premièred the play at the First Floor Art Gallery earlier this year and since then I have been performing at different venues.”
Currently, Gabriel is finalising the layout of her poetry anthology, “They Were Silent”, which is being published in Germany.
Earlier this year she won The Marshal Kander Award for outstanding research in HIV and Aids through applied drama and theatre from the University of Witwatersrand.
She has performed in other countries including South Africa, Tanzania, Germany, Rwanda, Malawi, DRC and Zambia, to name a few.
