AS THE Zabalaza Theatre Festival celebrates its fifth year it is not only growing, but also forging links with other festivals. This year’s festival takes place from Saturday to March 28 at the Baxter Theatre with almost 50 productions from 30 areas from as far as Tembisa in Gauteng showcasing the work of more than 300 artists. On the main programme 13 productions will be presented during the week, while 34 will be presented out of competition at the weekend.
The developmental platform is not only packed full of plays presented by community theatre groups from around the country, but also hosting 10 guest performances from here and abroad and presenting shows at the Obs Family Festival in partnership with Assitej SA and Theatre Arts Admin Collective.
Shows also on at the Obs Family Festival include Pushmi Pullyu by UKAO Theatre Company from Delft, Nomvula by Magnet Theatre and Making Mandela by KBT Productions and Hello Elephant from Joburg.
In addition, Assistej SA is presenting workshops to Zabalaza Theatre Festival attendees about how to make theatre for youth and children. Assistej SA director, Yvette Hardie, says they are working on creating a symbiotic relationship between the two festivals: “We want to encourage community theatre groups to think about this audience because it is the biggest audience and it is the audience that is going to be with you for the longest,” she said. Some of the specialist workshops included in the festival will be conducted by Theatre Patrasket (Denmark/ Assistej), theatre for babies with Gabi dan Drote (Germany/ Assistej), Complicité (UK) and Lara Foot’s directors’ workshop.
This year Zabalaza will also include more dance, which is a first for the community theatre festival. Zabalaza artistic director, Thami Mbongo, says these productions have been included only if they were able to work to a narrative, not simply presenting dance only.
The festival has grown in leaps and bounds over the past four years, and Mbongo and his team have seen an improve-ment in the quality of work they are presented with at the six mini festivals held as “auditions” for the main festival.
Opening night has again proved to be a tricky because Mbongo wants to bring in some of the weekend shows as well, “for diversity”.
This year will be the first time that Zabalaza produce a show, this being the Xhosa setwork for grade 10s, Akwaba, based on the book by Thenjiswa Ntwana and directed by Sizwe Msutu. The Baxter and Zabalaza have also partnered with Junkett Publishers to make scripts of the best of the Zabalaza winning productions available as books. They are Bulelani Mabutyana’s Worst of Both Worlds (2012), Phillip Dikotla’s Skierlik (2013) and Khayalethu Anthony’s The Champion (2014) which will be on sale during the festival.
Thematically, Mbongo has noticed a variety of storylines in this year’s productions, but the theme of journey and the sense of travelling has been popping up regularly.
He has also noticed that their audience is growing, probably thanks to the ever-growing number of companies involved. This year they specifically targeted educational institutions which is how UCT and CPUT will also present works.
“It’s the life after Zabalaza that’s been amazing, like Khayalethu being at the Festival of Fame in Joburg. It’s opening up doors for people. And then, for him to be acknowledged by the Fleur du Caps, that’s also a boost,” said Mbongo (about Anthony winning a Fleur du Cap for Best Actor in a One-Man-Show for The Champion which debuted at the Zabalaza Festival.
• The Zabalaza Theatre Festival, Saturday to March 28, Baxter Theatre. Six performances a day in the week on the main programme.