International artists absent at theatre fest

It was a no-show for international theatre acts at the inaugural Udolo Wanga Theatre Festival and Conference. The festival and conference took place at Alliance Francaise de Blantyre and Portuguese Club over the weekend. The absence of international acts forced organisers YDC Theatre, led by playwright Fumbani Phiri, to cut days for the festival and conference from three to two days at the 11th hour. "We would have loved to have the international acts to have a good exchange of ideas but challenges beyond their control made them not to show up. This led us to adjust [days], hence finishing on Saturday and not Sunday(yesterday)," Phiri, who is also YDC Theatre Director, said. Theatre groups from South Africa, Ghana, Zambia and Zimbabwe were supposed to perform at the festival. Despite the setback, the festival lived up to its billing, with local acts from Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre staging productions that explored themes of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), stigma, access, equity, consent, protection, advocacy and accountability. The festival opened on Friday at Alliance Francaise de Blantyre with presentations by Nyokase Madise, whose topic focused on the role of youth media brands in fulfilling Malawian girls' right to sexual reproductive health education with a focus on Zathu. There were also presentations from University of Malawi lecturer Madalo Dzanja Mataka as well as Alfred Kamwendo. The presentations challenged theatre practitioners to take a lead role in creating powerful productions tackling issues of sexual reproductive health in order to bring about change. Inter-Alliance of Umunthu Theatre staged a play titled Uncaged before YDC Theatre served a play titled Kulibe Mbeta. The two groups tackled critical issues, including that of abortion, before patrons were engaged in question-and-answer sessions that reflected on performances. The climax of the first day was an artists' reception at KK Lounge, spiced up by performances from Agorosso and Dikamawoko. On the second day, the theatre feast went to Portuguese Club, where theatre groups showed the power of drama. Groups that stood out on the second day included Rise Arts with their talk and The Games, which spoke volumes of sex for grades in universities; Paragon Arts (Divulge); Linga Creatives (The Letter); and Dikamawoko Arts (Skipping Without Ropes) featuring Tawonga Taddja Nkhonjera and Shando. Other acts that starred at the festival on the second day included Nzeka Arts, Mzuni Theatre Height and Hephzibar Art. Paragon Arts Director Phil Kuipa described Udolo Wanga Festival as a good initiative. "The theme of the festival, which was sexual reproductive health, is on my heart and I have been working in this space for a long time. The platform was also an opportunity for theatre practitioners to learn from each other," Kuipa said. The festival was powered by Hivos Southern Africa and French Institute.

WIRE — It was a no-show for international theatre acts at the inaugural Udolo Wanga Theatre Festival and Conference. The festival and conference took place at Alliance Francaise de Blantyre and Portuguese Club over the weekend. The absence of international acts forced organisers YDC Theatre, led by playwright Fumbani Phiri, to cut days for the festival and conference from three to two days at the 11th hour. "We would have loved to have the international acts to have a good exchange of ideas but challenges beyond their control made them not to show up. This led us to adjust [days], hence finishing on Saturday and not Sunday(yesterday)," Phiri, who is also YDC Theatre Director, said. Theatre groups from South Africa, Ghana, Zambia and Zimbabwe were supposed to perform at the festival. Despite the setback, the festival lived up to its billing, with local acts from Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre staging productions that explored themes of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), stigma, access, equity, consent, protection, advocacy and accountability. The festival opened on Friday at Alliance Francaise de Blantyre with presentations by Nyokase Madise, whose topic focused on the role of youth media brands in fulfilling Malawian girls' right to sexual reproductive health education with a focus on Zathu. There were also presentations from University of Malawi lecturer Madalo Dzanja Mataka as well as Alfred Kamwendo. The presentations challenged theatre practitioners to take a lead role in creating powerful productions tackling issues of sexual reproductive health in order to bring about change. Inter-Alliance of Umunthu Theatre staged a play titled Uncaged before YDC Theatre served a play titled Kulibe Mbeta. The two groups tackled critical issues, including that of abortion, before patrons were engaged in question-and-answer sessions that reflected on performances. The climax of the first day was an artists' reception at KK Lounge, spiced up by performances from Agorosso and Dikamawoko. On the second day, the theatre feast went to Portuguese Club, where theatre groups showed the power of drama. Groups that stood out on the second day included Rise Arts with their talk and The Games, which spoke volumes of sex for grades in universities; Paragon Arts (Divulge); Linga Creatives (The Letter); and Dikamawoko Arts (Skipping Without Ropes) featuring Tawonga Taddja Nkhonjera and Shando. Other acts that starred at the festival on the second day included Nzeka Arts, Mzuni Theatre Height and Hephzibar Art. Paragon Arts Director Phil Kuipa described Udolo Wanga Festival as a good initiative. "The theme of the festival, which was sexual reproductive health, is on my heart and I have been working in this space for a long time. The platform was also an opportunity for theatre practitioners to learn from each other," Kuipa said. The festival was powered by Hivos Southern Africa and French Institute.

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