2017 Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival lineup showcases 56 productions

Now in its seventh year, the festival will see young and rising talent, along with some stalwarts and previous participants fill the Baxter stages over the eight-day event where the focus for 2017 is on fresh and innovative ideas.

Nomakrestu Xakathugaga and Thando Mzembe in The Holy Plan B, pic by Sithemebele Junior

Festival schedule

The festival kicks off with the Zabalaza Weekend on Saturday, 18 and Sunday, 19 March, when all the venues and spaces in the Baxter theatre complex will pulsate with dynamic and assorted artistic activities featuring nearly 30 productions.

This is followed by the Zabalaza Week from Monday, 20 to Friday, 25 March, with daily performances at 10.00, 10.30, 11.30, 12.30, 13.00, 14.30, 16.00, 16.30, 18.00, 18.30 and 20.00, in various venues and performed in six different languages - English, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu, Sesotho, Setswane and Afrikaans.

Productions from groups all the over the Western Cape, including some further afield such as Knysna, Wellington, Oudtshoorn, Swellendam, Bredasdorp and Paarl, make up the bulk of the programme, while there are two each from the Eastern Cape, Johannesburg and Pretoria and one from Durban.

The productions were primarily selected from the mini-festivals which were held earlier this year in Worcester, Nyanga East, Khayelitsha, Delft, the Eden Drama Festival, the Cape Winelands Festival and the Overberg Drama Festival. The winning productions from the latter three festivals are also included in the lineup.

Of the festival’s multiple genres, there will be drama, musical theatre, movement/dance, physical theatre and comedy. One of the innovations this year is the introduction of reggae in the musical theatre category, thereby extending the festival and artists to a whole new audience.

The core team behind the festival comprises artistic director Thami Mbongo, co-ordinator Zoleka Helesi, executive manager Bongile Mantsai, administrator Akhona Shinga and audience development officer, Monde Myataza.

In 2016 Zabalaza won a special Fleur du Cap award for Innovation in Theatre for “their phenomenal contribution to the development of new South African work by providing a platform for artists who want to venture into acting, stage management, writing and directing”. The same year, Thami Mbongo received the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports Ministerial award for the Best Contribution to Drama in the province.

Samuel Jumat and Llwellyn Bond in Afsny Punt, pic by Moeniel Jacobs

Past successes

The Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival has produced many success stories and it has given rise to great young stars that have graced the world’s stages in a short period, gathering accolades along the way. Many other artists have become recognised and have managed to carve careers for themselves in the arts, both locally and abroad.

Khayalethu Anthony performed the coveted role of Solomon opposite Dame Janet Suzman in Solomon and Marion, for which he received a Naledi award for Best Newcomer. His production of ‘The Champion’, won the 2014 Best Production of Zabalaza Festival and went on to receive a Fleur du Cap nomination for Best Performance by a Lead Actor in a Play and won the Fleur du Cap for Best Performance in a Revue, Cabaret, or One-Person Show.

Phillip Dikotla’s Skierlik, the 2013 Best of Zabalaza winner, received a Fleur du Cap nomination for Best Script and won the Fleur du Cap for Best Solo Performance, as well as a Naledi award for Best Newcomer. The production was also invited to be part of the international arts festival, Afrovibes, in 2014.

Poseletso Sejosingoe, winner of the Zabalaza Best Actress in 2012, went on to perform in the Baxter’s production of Scrooge and is currently touring internationally with the musical ‘The Lion King’.

Xola Honono in Therapy, pic by Sithembele Junior

Zabalaza, in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport, have been nominating actors and actresses to audition for 7de Laan and Suidooster. All those who auditioned were awarded cameo roles over the last few years. In 2016 William Michaels, Robyn September and Llewellyn Bond appeared on television in Suidooster. Over the last few years Thabiso Newman, Samantha Pienaar, Olivia Pika, Julian van der Westhuizen, William Michaels and Melloney Marais, all appeared in the popular television soapie 7de Laan .

This year the observers and field workers who worked closely with the team to make the final selection comprised former Best of Zabablaza winners Lauren Hannie, Khayalethu Anthony, Bulelani Mabutyani and Loyiso Damoyi. This forms part of the skills transfer ethic of the programme where these artists were given the opportunity to develop their own artistic and administrative skills.

To date, five of the Best of Zabalaza play scripts have been published through a partnership with Junket Publishers. In this way, a growing body of plays that are accessible, relevant and artistically skilful are easily available to communities, schools, other educational institutions and theatre groups. This year will see the launch of Lauren Hannies’ ‘TIP-ex’ (2016 winner). The others are ‘Fruit’ by Paul Noko (2015), ‘The Champion’ by Khayalethu Anthony (2014), ‘Skierlik’ by Phillip Dikotla (2013) and ‘Worst of Both Worlds’ by Bulelani Mabutyana (2012).

Zabalaza Intsika eBaxter Theatre loosely translated, means two things: striving towards being a pillar of the Baxter Theatre Centre and striving towards success.

The festival’s primary partner is the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport and is supported by the City of Cape Town.

Ticket details

Tickets for the festival are R30 and R40 for the Reggae Edition and booking is through Computicket on 0861 915 8000, online at www.computicket.com or at any Shoprite Checkers outlet. For discounted corporate, schools or block-bookings, charities or fundraisers, contact Sharon on 021 680 3962, email az.ca.tcu@draw.norahs or Carmen on 021 680 3993, email az.ca.tcu@snraek.nemrac.

To view the full 2017 festival programme go to www.baxter.co.za, facebook.com/zabalaza.

For further information about the festival or to make school’s bookings for any of the festival shows, please contact Akhona Shinga or Monde Myataza on 021 680 3980 or email them at az.ca.tcu@azalabazretxab.