Author Archives: Bukiwe Sihlongonyane

Swazi actors: Noma Dumezweni

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Noma Dumezweni is an English actress. In 2006, she won an Olivier Award for her role in A Raisin in the Sun. She stars as Hermione Granger in the original West End and Broadway runs of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which garnered her second Olivier Award.

Born in Swaziland, of South African parents, Dumezweni lived in Botswana, Kenya and Uganda. She arrived in England as a refugee on 17 May 1977 with her sister and mother. She first lived in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where she was educated before moving to London.

Dumezweni’s work in theatre includes: President of an Empty Room and The Hour We Knew Nothing Of Each Other[4] at the National Theatre, London;[5] Breakfast with Mugabe,[6] Antony and Cleopatra[7] and Much Ado About Nothing[8] for the RSC; A Raisin in the Sun for the Young Vic at the Lyric Hammersmith, London[9] (for which she won her Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role[10]); A Midsummer Night’s Dream,[11] The Master and Margarita,[12] Nathan the Wise[13] and The Coffee House at Chichester Festival Theatre, Six Characters in Search of an Author in the Chichester Festival production at the Gielgud Theatre[14][15]and The Bogus Woman[16] at the Traverse and the Bush. In spring of 2009 she appeared in the RSC’s The Winter’s Tale.[17][18][19] In 2013-2014 she appeared in A Human Being Died That Night at the Fugard Theater in Cape Town, the Market Theatre in Johannesburg, which later transferred to the Hampstead Theatre in London.[20]

She starred in Linda at London’s Royal Court Theatre in November 2015, stepping into the role vacated by Kim Cattrall with a few days notice before press night. Awarding the production five stars, the Daily Telegraph’s Chief Theatre Critic Dominic Cavendish wrote “If they can bottle and mass-produce whatever it is that Noma Dumezweni has got then, please, I want to order a life-time’s supply.”[21]

In December 2015 it was announced that Dumezweni had been cast as Hermione Granger in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.[22] On the announcement, theatre critic Kate Maltby described her as “an actress who consistently engages and enthrals.”[23] The casting of the black Dumezweni as Hermione sparked fervent discussion, to which J.K. Rowling responded that Hermione’s skin was never specified as white.[24][25] Dumezweni is set to reprise her role on Broadway at the Lyric Theatre in 2018.[26]

‘I Am a Refugee Child.’ Watch Harry Potter Play’s Hermione Granger Give a Powerful Speech

It was a truly magical Sunday night for the cast of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, as the play took home bronze statuettes at the Olivier Awards sweeping the ceremony, according to the BBC.

Noma Dumezweni who won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her portrayal of Harry Potter’s bookish best friend, Hermione Granger, delivered a powerful speech about her life as a refugee child.

“I arrived in this country as a refugee child with my sister and my mother,” she said. “I suppose what I’m trying to say — this is my little political bit, if you don’t mind — I am a refugee child.”

The actress, who the Guardian reports has South African parents and was born in Swaziland, joins the rank of performers using their platforms at awards ceremonies to touch on political issues.

Dumezweni’s casting had attracted hostility from some fans who complained that the character, played by Emma Watson in the films, was white. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling took to Twitter to announce her support of the casting choice.

Sources:
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noma_Dumezweni
  • http://time.com/4733155/noma-dumezweni-acceptance-speech-harry-potter/

Theatre for Public Health in Swaziland: Arts Against Abuse

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In commemoration of 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Members of the public got a chance to see The-Four-Musk-Art-eers in action at the Theatre Club on December 9, where they joined the U.S. Embassy and Kwaka Indvodza, the male mentoring project, in a commemoration of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence. The four artists – Sandziso ‘Sands’ Matsebula (singer), Honest Mhlanga (fine arts), Fundzisile Dlamini Zubani fashion designer, and Phila Dlamini (public speaker) and Nontobeko Dlamini ‘Beko the story teller’  all showed their solidarity in the fight against gender violence by collaborating in using various artistic media to raise awareness and generate a dialogue about gender-based violence with unforgettable performances.

By  | 9 December, 2016 | Topics: News

Theatre for Public Health in Swaziland: Educational Plays Bring In Audiences

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James Hall

MBABANE, Aug 20 2002 (IPS) – Like many actors in impoverished countries in Southern Africa, where few people are able to buy theatre tickets to support the performing arts, jobs and theatrical experience are coming from commissions from Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and government ministries for plays with educational and social messages.

We are supported by plays with educational themes, but just as importantly this is a way to bring theatre to rural communities who have never seen a production, says Simneke Magagula, director of a Swaziland theatrical troupe Sibahle Nje.

Loosely translated as ‘We are truly beautiful,’ Sibahle Nje is a small troupe of five actors and five actresses who compensate with high energy and extraordinary mimicking abilities for a lack of sets and props, and often a lack of a stage.

Another Swazi troupe of aspiring and accomplished thespians is the People ‘s Education Theatre (PET), whose director, Andreas Mavuso, keeps his group performing through commissions from health and social welfare organisations.

A typical play by Sibahle Nje is held under the trees in open air, with the only incidents that could postpone a performance being rain or hailstorms. ‘We have performed under all sorts of conditions, even at night with a campfire for our stage lighting,’ says Cynthia Dube, an actress in her twenties who specialised in stooped and aged granny characters four decades older than her.

Currently, the group is performing at various venues around the country two productions, a story about HIV transmission and one about child abuse. Both themes are serious, and they pick up where traditional educational booklets and lectures have largely failed among audiences by providing information that will be remembered and hopefully used.

The HIV play is a rollicking comedy about an unfaithful husband and his inebriated friend, both whom are put in their place by strong-willed women. Even grade school children respond to the antics, and come away with an understanding about how a sexually transmitted disease is passed on when adults are irresponsible.

‘Mr. Snake’, a new play that debuted at the weekend before an audience of social welfare workers, was commissioned by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The script is based on a story by UNICEF s representative in Swaziland, Alan Brody.

Evolving from discussions with church groups and child welfare workers, the story was first published in booklet form to instruct children about child abuse. But a theatrical version was sought to bring the message to more people, many of whom are illiterate adults or children who because of poverty are erratic school goers and are not proficient readers. But the children are potential victims of child abuse, a problem that is growing in the country.

The Swaziland Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA) reports that cases of child abuse and incest its counsellors have handled this year have increased by 50 percent from a year ago.

‘Child abuse is such a sensitive subject, that we sought to use animals to tell the tale, and we found this makes a controversial subject like sex acceptable to conservative adults as well,’ says Brody.

Actor Skumbusa Matsebula, who plays the lead role of a snake that seduces the nubile daughter of the Rock Rabbit family, says, ‘The allegorical approach also allows us actors to create broad comic roles. This is fun for us, and the audiences respond well, especially the children, who are the primary audience for the message.’

Smooth talking Mr. Snake, who slithers in from the city, gets Mr. Rock Rabbit drunk, and convinces the daughter to go away with him. He is thwarted when the girl shows common sense, and resists his advances at the play’s climax.

The group’s AIDS message play is performed for such health-oriented NGOs as the Alliance of Mayors’ Initiative for Community Action Against AIDS on the Local Level (AMICAALL), which has brought the actors to audiences in all of Swaziland’s large and mid-size towns. A new government organisation, the National Emergency Response Committee on HIV and AIDS (NERCA) is another of the group’s patrons. So are the health and social welfare ministry and the ministry of education, which calls upon Sibahle Nje to inform while entertaining audiences of schoolchildren who have never seen professional actors.

The People’s Educational Theatre is employed by ‘Women in Law for Southern Africa’s Swaziland branch to perform a topical comedy on the subject of women’s rights.

‘The subject of gender rights is controversial in a traditional paternalistic society,’ says PET’s artistic director Mavusa. ‘People respond well to the comedy, and this makes the message more palatable. The audience members see themselves in the characters on stage.’

Often, there is no stage, and only on the rarest of occasions are performers given microphones to pick up their voices. The actors have a challenge to be heard when performing in wind-swept open areas. They manage through the old-fashioned method: by projecting their voices.

‘It is like we’re actors at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre 500 years ago, but instead of shouting over the drunken groundlings in the cheap seats we have to compete with the chattering school kids,’ says Sibahle Nje actor Skumbusa Matsebula.

Vusi Gamedze, who plays wily Mr. Goat in the child abuse play, is a natural actor whose background is typical of the thespians in the country. ‘I’ve only been acting with the group for a year. I was making refrigerators at a factory for five years until it closed down. I tried out at an audition, and it came easily to me.’

Alie Yende, who at 22 is Sibahle Nje’s youngest actor, says, ‘There is no theatre in Swaziland because people are too poor buy enough tickets to keep a production company going on a regular basis. But plays are good ways to communicate messages to people. That is why we use ourselves to educate the people.’

All plays from Aristophanes onward are educational in what they say about human nature. But African NGOs are using plays to emphasise specific messages, and in so doing are exposing thousands of people to live theatre and giving talented actors a way to practice their craft.

Source:

  • http://www.ipsnews.net/2002/08/theatre-swaziland-educational-plays-bring-in-audiences/

Theatre for Public Health in Swaziland: A Rural Drama Club Tackles the Tough Issues

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UNICEF Swaziland/2007/Skorochod
© UNICEF Swaziland/2007/Skorochod
Bongiwe, pictured left and two peers in the theatre club, hold their trophy for second position in a recent regional drama competition

Langeni, December 2007 — Well spoken with a broad smile, Bongiwe is a natural actress. Even when her stage is a big dusty field at the side of the road, she shines. Her gestures are big and bold, and the 20 or so community grandparents nestled under the trees follow her every move.

At 17, Bongiwe is the second oldest member of the eLangeni Youth Drama Group. The other 15 members range in age from seven to 18 years. The day’s performance was one of their best, portraying how physical abuse of children impacts families and communities.

“I feel fortunate to be in the club,” says Bongiwe. “School is almost finished and there isn’t much hope for a job here. But I could be doing nothing. Instead I’m having fun and helping my community.”

An expert at creating other worlds for her audiences, Bongiwe has no illusions for herself about finding work. She knows that her chances of gaining employment, even with a high school diploma, are slim. Nearly 40% unemployment and 69% of the population living below the poverty line makes young people like Bongiwe vulnerable – to HIV infection, unwanted pregnancy, and a host of other ills that plague the rural poor, especially women, in Swaziland.

But drama clubs like those in eLangeni keep youth busy, out of trouble, and help teach them something along the way.

Recognizing the potential of drama, UNICEF teamed up with Swaziland Theatre for Children and Young People (SWATCYP) in 2006 to promote theatre as a tool to educate and entertain children and youth. A nationwide drama festival followed and clubs such as the one in eLangeni were formed across Swaziland. A similar programme was held in 2007 to reach out to even more children.

The drama clubs don’t shy away from the tough issues. ELangeni Drama Club performances address child abuse, HIV, drug addiction and child trafficking – issues that Swazi children face each day.

“More than 12,000 children have been reached through theatre programmes,” says SWATCYP Secretary General Maswati Dludlu. “These children teach one another and teach the communities at the same time. The children bring their own ideas and experiences to the performance so it makes the messages they send more meaningful.”

eLangeni Drama Club performs within its own community and, when the club can raise the funds for bus fare, also performs in other parts of the country. Despite being together for only one year, the Club has proved itself, earning second position in a regional drama competition in mid 2007.

“I know we’re making a difference in our community,” says Bongiwe. “We bring up issues that many people just don’t want to talk about. The club is so good for our people, and so good for me. I hope it continues.”

Source:

  • https://www.unicef.org/swaziland/media_9269.html

Swazi Theatre Groups: Iphi Africa

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The Prince Claus Fund supports the theatre play A Drop in the Land, a fruitful co-production between Swaziland’s Iphi Africa and South Africa’s Laway Arts. According to the director Nelson Mapako’s credo “don’t tell but show” in a synergy between movements, puppets, music and dance young actors and dancers let a story unfold about young people’s daily worries and pursuits.

A Welcome Drop in Swaziland

 

Nelson Mapako and Macebo Mavuso

“where is africa”

The theatre production is directed by Nelson Mapako and Macebo Mavuso. Mapako initiated the theatre group Iphi Africa (literally “Where is Africa”) a few years ago, enabling young actors and dancers to explore the art of dance and drama while tackling the challenges of Africa. With this project he has provided Swaziland with a welcome platform for artistic talents to assemble, develop and express themselves. His co-producer’s team, Laway Arts, meaning “flexibility,” is a Dutch-South African initiative which cultural activities cut across countries and cultures. The collaboration between Mapako and Mavuso, who is a professional and internationally operating actor, puppet player and musician, might function as artistic impulse for Swaziland, which theatre industry is still in its infancy. Artistic initiatives employed here encounter many obstacles, due to a lack of facilities and governmental support and the underdeveloped condition of professional theatre companies and art education. A theatre co-production with Laway Arts brings in professional artistic skills, experience and knowledge and moreover breaks through the isolated position of Swaziland’s art practice. Both directors are convinced that Swaziland’s future theatre development and production will reap the fruits from A Drop in the Land.

background information

A Drop in the Land tours through the rural areas of Swaziland, with this country’s fast-growing early summer Bush Fire Festival as a highlight. Apart from this it will be performed in Zimbabwe and, importantly, during South Africa’s largest cultural event, the Grahamstown Festival,. For a local, informal theatre group from isolated Swaziland, which usually has merely a self-built township theatre at its disposal, producing a theatre play in professional setting and for a broad, international audience is a unique opportunity. It allows Mapako’s

group not only to promote a hitherto unknown and neglected field of art throughout rural Swaziland, but also to export this country’s culture outside its usually very closed borders, enabling artists to interact with colleagues from different parts of the world. Expecting it to sow the seeds of future international collaboration and professionalization of Swaziland’s theatre scene, the directors are convinced that with A Drop in the Land Swaziland’s secret source of tradition, culture and creative spirit will not run dry.

Source:

  • http://www.princeclausfund.org/en/activities/a-welcome-drop-in-swaziland.html

Swazi Theatre Groups: Kasi Theatre

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Times of Swaziland article:

THEATRE FINALLY REACHES RURAL CHILDREN

18/03/2016 00:49:00BY THOBEKA MANYATHELA
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MBABANE – The World Day of Theatre for Children and Young People, which officially falls on March 20, was commemorated last Sunday at Nsukumbili community, under Dlangeni Inkhundla.

The event, which was attended by over 200 people, was organised by Kasi Theatre Productions, and supported by the Baphalali Swaziland Red Cross Society.

Addressing the gathering, Kasi Theatre director Clifford Ndlovu, said children’s theatre in the country needs to be developed from the grassroots, in order to instil a culture of active arts in the youth.

“That is why this year we decided to bring the commemorations to a rural community, having held the past events in the big cities. Both rural and urban children should be exposed equally to the opportunities that theatre presents. We hope the community will encourage their children and the youth to actively participate in several arts initiatives, as arts have been proven to provide effective social grooming of children,” reasoned Ndlovu.
Ndlovu said the commemorations were part of the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People (ASSITEJ) organisation’s activities, which this year celebrates 50 years of existence.

“ASSITEJ exists to build the field of theatre for young audiences in every country of the world. It does this through linking members into national centres, into regional networks and into the wider ASSITEJ membership for international exchange. It provides through its programmes and activities, which include publication, promotion, research, networking, artistic exchange, mentorship and development, opportunities for the field of theatre for young audiences to become stronger and more effective,” explained Ndlovu.

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Source:

  • http://www.pressreader.com/swaziland/swazi-observer/20150505/282840779608203
  • http://www.times.co.sz/entertainment/107137-theatre-finally-reaches-rural-children.html

Swazi Theatre Groups: Creative Beans

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WHO THEY ARE

Annabel Morgan

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Founder and Director of Creative Beans

Annabel is a clown, facilitator and storyteller from Swaziland and Malawi. Her interest in performing arts began during her school years at the United World College of Southern Africa. From 2003 – 2006 Annabel studied Theatre Arts at the University of London, while also collaborating as a performing artist with InForm Theatre Company, a physical theatre-based ensemble. Annabel went on to train for two years with an international drama academy to become a drama teacher.

Searching for something closer to home and to her heart, Annabel returned to African soil and started Creative Beans. As a freelance performing and facilitating artist, she juggles many Creative Beans projects. She performs clown and storytelling shows, runs eco friendly holiday camps, facilitates clown/storytelling/play workshops for both adults and children, as well as other things. Annabel is a project co-ordinator, tour leader and artist for Clowns Without Borders South Africa, an artist-led humanitarian organization dedicated to improving the psychosocial condition of children and communities in areas of crisis through laughter and play. Annabel loves her work because it brings together some of her favourite things; working with the child spirit, healing through creative expression and play.

For more detailed information about Annabel’s artistic experience and study, click here to download her CV.

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Nadia Woodward
Associate Artist

Nadia (aka Mafia aka No-Idea aka NaBia) started performing at a young age and in 2000 attended the National School of Arts in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. Her love for performance, especially physical theatre and collaborative work led her to Cape Town, where she began her studies at the University of Cape Town in 2006. She completed her BA in Theatre & Performance at the end of 2009. Shortly after graduating in early 2010 Nadia began her journey with CWBSA with the hope to bring joy, laughter and a sense of play as a means of healing into the lives of many. She believes creative play opens a space for people to express their frustrations, pains and joys in ways they may not otherwise be able to do. Nadia has also performed in various physical theatre productions around the country including Lenny and the Waste Land (Out the Box Festival 2010), Paraphanalia and  Interiors  (NAF 2011).

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Nicholas Mamba
Associate Artist

Nicholas is a clown, facilitator, writer and theatre director. He is the director of the People’s Educational Theatre, one of the biggest theatre groups in Swaziland. Nicholas has also been working with Clowns Without Borders since 2008. He loves the arts, especially drumming, singing and dancing. He also teaches accounting, and for this reason, has the clown name “Professor Chicken”.

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China Zikalala
Associate Artist

China is a clown, juggler and magician from Swaziland. He has trained with Clowns Without Borders South Africa and when he is not studying, he works for the Peoples Educational Theatre (PET). China has several years experience attending functions as a clown and is available for birthday parties and events. Contact Creative Beans to make a booking.

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Musa Zikalala
Associate Artist

Musa is a dancer, musician, storyteller and clown from Ngwalini, Swaziland. He is the founder and visionary behind Embiteni Arts and Edutainment, a unique amphitheatre in the heart of Ngwalini. Embiteni is a vibrant and dynamic space which hosts arts events for the local community. Mo’ fire!

Adam Rogerson
Captain Monkey Pants

Adam is a nature guide and permaculture enthusiast. In Swaziland, you can find him with his hands in the soil at Guba, facilitating delicious and nutritious food workshops or running barefoot up mountains.

At Jelly Belly camp, Adam is best known for spinning, tickling, treasure hunts and making permaculture and gardening fun!
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Hannah Johnson
Captain Painty Face

Hannah is a visual artist, singer and Montessori teacher from the UK. In Swaziland, you can find her at Guba Farm playschool or floating about in nature looking for artistic inspiration.

At Jelly Belly camp, Hannah is best known for creating treasure out of trash and painting amazing faces!

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Jamie McLaren Lachman
Associate Artist

Jamie McLaren Lachman is a storyteller, clown, actor, musician, poet, director, and facilitator. He is also a graduate of Yale University (BA), the University of Oxford (MSc) and the Dell’Arte International School for Physical Theatre. As director and founder of Clowns Without Borders South Africa, Jamie has over 10 years experience implementing arts-based interventions for vulnerable children and families in Southern Africa. Jamie’s work has been implemented in various forms by local and international NGOs in South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, Rwanda, Burundi, Haiti, Ethiopia, and Lebanon.

He has taught workshops and given lectures at Yale University, the University of Witswatersrand, Rhodes University, the University of Cape Town, the University of Zimbabwe, and the University of KZN. Jamie has presented at numerous conferences and festivals including the UNITE for Sight Global Health Conference at Yale University (2006, 2008 & 2009), the Drama For Life Africa Research Conference (2009) at the University of Witswatersrand, and the International Storytelling Festival for Peace at the University of Manitoba (2008 & 2010). Jamie is currently working on a doctorate at the University of Oxford in Social Intervention. His research examines the development and evaluation of a community-driven, arts-based parenting programme for vulnerable families in South Africa. Always looking for laughter in the life’s simplicity, Jamie strives to live each day fully with compassion and amazement.

WHAT THEY DO
On top of regular clown shows:
Clowns Without Borders: Annabel (Banana Bell) is a project co-ordinator and senior performing and facilitating artist for Clowns Without Borders South Africa (CWBSA). CWBSA is an artist-led humanitarian organization dedicated to improving the psychosocial condition of children and communities in areas of crisis through laughter and play. This takes the form of clown shows and arts based programmes which use play, storytelling, circus arts and mindfulness to bring communities together. Annabel is currently a board member for CWBSA and on the advisory board for CWB UK.

Annabel has performed, facilitated, directed and co-ordinated projects for CWB in Swaziland, South Africa, Kenya, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lithuania and Sweden.

Clown Doctors: Clown doctors are clowns who go to hospitals and clinics to bring emotional relief to patients and their families through laughter and play. As the saying goes, ‘Laughter is the best medicine’!

Having trained with Raudonos Nosys in Lithuania, Creative Beans regularly sends Banana into the government hospitals in Swaziland (and any visiting clown doctors too). Banana has also visited Cheshire Homes, the only rehabilitative centre for children living with disabilities in Swaziland, bringing laughter and smiles to children and their families. Contact Creative Beans to find out more.

Storytelling: Stories contain great wisdom and have been used for centuries to help us understand our world. They are a creative and friendly way for adults and children to explore emotions, core values and life lessons. Through creative arts, Creative Beans classes and workshops explore stories from around the world in a fun, playful and meaningful way. Story themes such as caring for the environment, being yourself and life dreams can be explored through drama, art, song and dance.
Grown ups: Creative Beans believes in the power of creativity, play and self reflection to inspire personal and social transformation. We can offer workshops for companies and groups using creative and expressive arts, games, stories and play to build trust, community and self reflection.
Activities for kids, including:
Jelly Belly Eco Camp: Jelly Belly eco camp is a fun, creative and eco friendly way for your child to spend their holiday. They will be involved in nature arts and crafts, outdoor activities, games, making healthy nutritious snacks, circus skills, environmental awareness and recycled art. In this safe, open and positive environment it is also a chance for your child to play and interact  with other children.
Drama classes
Creative Beans Drama Classes are fun, playful and friendly; using drama to build confidence and self-esteem, improve listening and communication skills as well as using creative movement and music to develop coordination and expression. Classes are structured to include improvisation, voicework, movement to music, storytelling and performance skills. We also play many games to inspire the imagination, encourage teamwork and develop awareness! Classes are aimed at children between 3 and 11 years old and are taught at pre-school and primary school as an extra curricular activity.

In the past, the following schools in Swaziland have offered Creative Beans drama as an extra-curricular activity: International Montessori, Panorama Montessori, Sifundzani Primary, Montessori Life, Care Bears pre-school and Waterford KaMhlaba United World College.

Shows:
Charlene and the Chocolate Factory (2013)
An adaptation of the classic, performed by students at Montessori Life Primary School.
Voice and performance coaching by Annabel Morgan
The Peace Child (2009)
The Peace Child, a parable of the Christmas story, is set in the far-off and fictional land of Mambica. It tells the story of two opposing tribes with different lifestyles and traditions. The Sopongi and Wannakiki tribes are separated by a river and also by generations of animosity. There seems to be little hope of reconciliation until one day the tribes receive some unexpected visitors…
With its tribal rhythms, great melodies and positive message of peace and goodwill, The Peace Child was a colourful and vibrant Christmas show performed by 120 Grade 1 and 2 children at Sifundzani Primary.
Directed by Annabel Morgan.
Green Beans

Creative Beans is dedicated to inspiring creative thinking for sustainable living.

Our Green Bean activities include recycled arts and craft workshops, creative environmental workshops and eco camps. Workshops often use stories with environmental themes as a starting point to explore inter-connectedness and dependency on the planet. For examples of how we work, see the projects below.

Water 4 All Sanitation Project

Partnering with COSPE, Creative Beans carried out creative environmental sessions in primary schools in the Lubombo region of Swaziland.
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Tetrapak Wallets: An environmentally quirky way to store your money and cards!

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Tetrapak recycled wallets are handmade in the Kingdom of Swaziland, using discarded milk and fruit juice cartons. The wallets are a creative and practical approach to recycling in a country where there is a need for environmental awareness and creative thinking. All of the Tetrapaks used have a uniquely African design, in particular those for Mageu, a maize drink.

The wallets provide inspiration to think creatively and see economic potential in what is usually regarded as waste.Each wallet is made from a recycled carton so quality may differ. Each wallet also had a life of its own before becoming a wallet. Imagine the stories it could tell. Inside each wallet you will find a 5c Swazi coin as a symbol of good luck. May prosperity flow with ease and abundance!

Outreach:

Creative Beans is dedicated to investing time and energy in voluntary projects in the community, especially for orphans and vulnerable children. We take a Robin Hood style approach; charging a little extra to those who can pay to enable those who can’t to still enjoy the fun!

In Swaziland there is currently little emphasis on the arts in primary school curriculum or encouragement of creative thinking and expression. Even more so for those children who are unable to go to school. Creative Beans is dedicated to lighting the creative fire within disadvantaged communities.

Creative Beans projects have ranged from writing and directing plays at Neighbourhood Care Points to visiting children’s homes and hospitals as a clown.

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Sources:
  • http://creativebeans.weebly.com/

Bush Fire Festival – Music and Performing Arts Festival

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Summer Theatre Festivals Around the World

May 13, 2014 — 

Whether you’re traveling across the pond or across the street this summer, make sure you check out our annual listing of more than 200 theatre festivals worldwide.

Swaziland

Bushfire, Ezulwini Valley; www.bush-fire.com; May 30-Jun 1.

With 100 percent of its profits donated to local orphan and community-development charities, the Bush Fire Festival delights in the positive effects of the creativity of the human spirit. A parade of arts (including music, theatre, poetry, dance and circus performance) fuse together into three days of gleeful expression. The Talking Doors exhibit (pictured) defines Bush Fire’s desire for artistic collaboration by allowing festival goers to interact in a structure made out of walls composed of dozens of doors.

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Five International Theatre Collaborations You Should Know

April 11, 2014 — 

From festivals to interdisciplinary collaboration, from Brazil to Swaziland, each of these locations offers something unique.

Malkerns, Swaziland

Bushfire: The vibrant performance venue and gallery House on Fire was created in 2000 by Jiggs Thorne in his native Swaziland, on farmland his family has converted into a center of tourism (the complex, Malandela, also contains a B&B, restaurant, botanical garden and handicraft business). House on Fire has attracted headline musical talent and become a haven for local sculptors and artisans, as well as a destination for public school groups that lack a formal arts curriculum. In 2007 Thorne inaugurated House on Fire’s Bushfire Festival. The venue already boasted an amphitheatre seating several hundred and a lawn that can host concerts for thousands. In 2012 Thorne added the Barn, an intimate space for performance art, exhibitions, speakers, and roundtable discussions.

Sponsored by telecommunications company MTN, the Bushfire Festival now maxes out its capacity at 20,000 visitors over the course of three days. An estimated 65 percent of that audience is Swazi, but 2013 festival surveys indicate visitors came from some 30 countries. And the momentum continues: Bushfire reached out last year to form Firefest, a southern African festival circuit, with four partners: Harare International Festival of Arts in Zimbabwe, the Azgo Festival in Mozambique, the BlackMajor Festival in South Africa and the Sakifo Musik Festival on the island of Réunion. All five events have been coordinated to take place during May and June, which encourages artists from Africa and abroad to tour the entire route (and enables the venues to share presenting costs).

Music is Bushfire’s driving force, but theatre has its place too. Three of seven editions so far have featured Gcina Mhlophe—a South African activist, poet and storyteller who performs in English, Afrikaans, Zulu and Xhosa—and last year the South African father-and-daughter duo Ellis and Céire Pearson performed a play about drought titled Catch the Rain. At press time, Thorne was in the process of securing one or more theatrical performances for 2014. He says he looks for broad appeal across generations and cultures and “an emphasis on relevant sociopolitical and environmental-based topics.” In that same vein of social responsibility, Bushfire divides its profits between a Swazi NGO for orphans called Young Heroes, and a nonprofit called Gone Rural boMake that runs water, health and education programs for female artisans. (May 30–June 1; www.bush-fire.com) 

Sources:

  • http://www.americantheatre.org/2014/04/11/five-international-theatre-collaborations-you-should-know/
  • http://www.americantheatre.org/2014/05/13/summer-theatre-festivals-around-the-world-2/3/

Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs

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Arts & Culture

The Swaziland National Council of Arts and Culture, is an administrative organization, under the Ministry of Sports Culture and Youth Affairs, with delegated powers, to Preserve, Promote and Co-Ordinate all matters of Arts and Culture, in the Kingdom, of Swaziland, supervised by the Directorate Office under the Ministry.

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The Council has as members, the different art codes under its umbrella, specializing in the different art codes, namely:

•    The Performing Arts (Music, Theatre, Dance & Beauty Pageants)
•    Visual Arts  ( Fine Arts, Craft, film & Television)
•    Literary Arts ( Book Writing and Publication)

Council

1.    The Association of Swaziland Theatre Groups ( ASTG)
2.    Association of Christian Artists of Swaziland ( ACASWA)
3.    Swaziland Arts and Music Association ( SWAMA)
4.    Independent Producers Association( IPAS)
5.    Imigidvo Yesintfu KaNgwane
6.    Swaziland National Umbholoho Association (SNUA)
7.    Swaziland Traditional Instruments Players Music Association ( STIMA)
8.    Swaziland Schools Culture Association (SSCA)
9.    Swaziland Beauty Pageant Association ( SBPA)
10.    Swaziland Visual Arts Network ( VANS)
11.    Umdlandla Writers and Authors Association)
12.    Beading Association
13.    Pottery Association
14.    Craft Association
15.    Sculptures
16.    Painters
17.    Designers
18.    Weavers

Source: http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=373&Itemid=358