For thousands of years, storytelling has been the way history has been passed down from generation to generation.
This is being feted with an extraordinary festival that celebrates the ancient art of storytelling, bringing performances and workshops to the community, and culminating in a storytelling competition on World Storytelling Day on March 21.
The Sibikwa Storytelling Festival takes place from March 10 and celebrates 20 years of democracy, works towards social togetherness, promotes indigenous languages, gives a platform to sign language and fights to build national identity.
The festival continues a proud tradition started by The Sibikwa Arts Centre in Daveyton on Gauteng’s East Rand in 1988. The centre used the arts to validate the lives of ordinary people by creating plays which reflected their daily lives. Their mission was always to promote quality arts education, theatre performances, vocational training and job creation in South Africa. Led by theatre stalwarts Smal Ndaba and Phyllis Klotz, Sibikwa has provided youth with focus and hope for the future. It uses performances, festivals and workshops to raise awareness of the role the arts can play in community development.
The festival takes place from March 10 to 12 at the Soweto Theatre and from March 18 to 21 at the Sibikwa Arts Centre.
At the Sibikwa Centre festivities will start with a medley of African stories presented by Nonhlanhla Hadebe (for preschoolers and grades 1 to 3) and Mosoeu Ketlele (grades 4 to 7) from 10am to 10.45am. Clowns without Borders presents Siyajabula! at 11am for the little ones, and Gcina Mhlophe will mesmerise with a selection of her stories for grades 4 to 7. At noon, the Open Mic Session hosted by the Streetqueen, aka Ntsiki Mazwa is open to everyone brave enough to tell their story. That afternoon, a teachers’ workshop conducted by Mhlophe will focus on how to delve into our own personal journeys, using the book of our lives as a guide to create stories. How to tell a good story is what will be demonstrated.
On March 19, Hadebe presents a medley of African stories including Spider the Drummer and Rabbit on the Moon from 10am, and a performance of Siyajabula! Stories by Mpho Molikeng and Musical San Stories by Mohamed will start at 11am. The Open Mic Session takes place at noon, and at 2.30pm is a teachers’ workshop – Storytelling – Tapping the Power of Narrative. Presented by Clowns without Borders, it will cover techniques on how to tell stories, how to create stories and the value of storytelling in the classroom.
March 20 opens with Sibo Masondo’s Eenie Meanie Greenie GROW! and Pops Mohamed’s Musical San Stories at 10am. Traditional stories from Lesotho with Molikeng follows at 11am and a performance by Masondo, aka Mime le Mot, called Point Blank. This is a collection of mimed stories inspired by the French mime artist Marcel Marceau and infused with South African influences by an artist who is a comedian at heart. An Open Mic Session starts at noon.
Storytelling is the star of the show on March 21. The competition on World Storytelling Day is open to anyone above the age of 15 who can tell a good story.
Pre-booking is essential and stories, which can be told in any of the official languages, should not be longer than 10 minutes. First prize is R3 000, second R1 500 and third R750, while R500 will be awarded to the most promising storyteller. Entry fees are R25 for the morning, R25 a workshop and R10 to enter the competition.
• Info: www.sibikwa.co.za, bookings: Michael Mabena at 011 422 43 59 or e-mail [email protected].