Gasebalwe Seretse
11 March 2008
One of the Power In The Voice mentors, Rasina Winfred Rasina has just returned from the United Kingdom (UK) where he represented Botswana.
The artist was chosen from among a number of local mentors to represent the country. The visit saw Rasina doing a series of performances and workshops in Britain. The multi-talented artist performed in several venues in central and east London including the Soho Theatre, Criterion Theatre, Apple & Snakes, African Writer's Evening, Neighbourhood Theatre and Poetry Cafe.
While in the UK, Rasina performed four theatre productions - Good Morning God, The Mirror, Funeral Programme and Inside Prison.
Good Morning God is a solo act that seeks to address a number of issues facing a young girl, Pertunia, growing up in contemporary Botswana.
The Mirror is about a boy who sees his reflection in the mirror for the first time. According to the actor-cum-storyteller-cum-poet, the boy mistakes his image for that of his brother with comical results.
Funeral Programme is about the debatable issue of global warming, which has the whole world worried, while Inside Prison focuses on the life of a young man who lands in prison. The latter explores the life of the young man inside prison, as the title suggests, and the reasons why he is there in the first place.
Rasina also got the opportunity to be the chief adjudicator during the UK finals, which saw a number of schools participating.
Talking about his UK Rasina says: "The trip to the UK made me a proud African. It is amazing how the people there are interested in what people from other countries are doing and they also value African arts very much."
Rasina further says contrary to popular view, the British audiences were not cold but actively participated in the shows and their response was always warm. The British Council were the main sponsors of the trip, which also received the backing of the UK-based Eastside Educational Trust and African Writers' Evening. Power In The Voice is a British Council initiative aimed at grooming upcoming performing artists in schools from participating countries that include the UK, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia and Mauritius.
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