Ephraim Keoreng
18 August 2008
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The British Council's international festival, dubbed Power in the Voice, which started last Thursday ended on Saturday.
The event saw African artists and those from the United Kingdom (UK) sharing the stage and giving out their best before a packed Gaborone International Convention Centre (GICC) on Saturday night. The artists came from Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa, UK, Zambia and Zimbabwe, and the rest from Botswana.
The show, which kicked off with a number of songs by a beautifully clad Sedibeng Choral Choir, promised to be a thriller right from the outset. The choir serenaded the crowd with their songs.
The Zambian team, which comprised of teenagers, presented a play on children's basic right to education. The dramatists portrayed the situation; as it is usually the case, whereby teachers would often neglect their duty and go to watch football matches during school hours.
Through the well-scripted play, they went on to expose some of the teachers' attitude toward extra-curricular activities. There are teachers who see activities like drama as wasteful of students' learning time.
Everyone who has been to school will agree that this does happen, and in this gripping tale, the actors captured the theme extremely well. One of the actresses even points out that every time she makes a mistake her teacher never hesitates to blame it on her involvement in drama.
Whenever she fails a test, she is told to quit drama because "it is retarding your progress".
This is the situation that some students find themselves in as they try to develop their artistic talents. They are made to regard extra-curricular activities as time wasting and not an essential part of their education. This attitude is not only displayed by teachers but also by some parents, which is rather sad because students need to explore themselves and identify their talents.
Then came Tjawangwa Dema, Botswana celebrated bard. The wordsmith did live up to her reputation, as she took the microphone and dropped word after word, creating a melodious rhythm that saw the appreciating audience cheering her all the way.
In one poem entitled Seven O'clock news, she assumed the persona of a Zimbabwean woman looking for her missing husband. In the poem, she asks questions about human suffering, posing questions like: "Have you ever seen God on CNN?"
The poem is the story of a woman in anguish, crying out as she gropes for peace in the dark alleys of life, where unimaginable horrors are visited upon people. This story does not only cast light on the plight of Zimbabweans, who are undergoing the most difficult economic challenges, but also on the problems buffeting many people across the globe.
The audience must have been elated when Zimbawean poet Tongai Leslie Makawa, who goes by the stage name of Outspoken, took the mic.
Zimbabwe is encountering many difficulties, and one would naturally expect an artist from that country to touch on some of them.
The dreadlocked artist did just that, dropping lines, and mesmerizing the crowd. Makawa has performed at almost all Zimbabwean international arts festivals.
The Botswana team, made up of students from Rainbow Secondary School, also did a marvelous job to entertain the audience. The group of four students is mentored by Winfred Rasina, a performing artist and playwright.
In a press kit prepared for the event, the British Council is said to have been founded in 1934 to build mutually beneficially relationships and "increase awareness of the UK's creative ideas and achievements.
We do this through English language teaching, opportunities in UK education, the promotion of arts and innovation, and the development of professional networks. We also connect people from the UK and Africa, using student exchange programmes, study visits and cultural events," it partly reads.
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