Actress Ellastas Msiska, who has featured in a number of productions with drama groups such as YDC Theatre, Wednesday, challenged fellow women in the sector to move out of their comfort zone and start stitching plays.
She made the remarks Wednesday at Jacaranda Cultural Centre (JCC) in Blantyre during a press conference on the launch of Theatre in Mandala project on ‘Strengthening Capacity for A Sustainable Theatre Sector’.
The project set to feature doings such as workshops is being funded by Copyright Society of Malawi (Cosoma) through Copyright Fund.
“I am very excited that we have this opportunity upon us to grow as theatre practitioners. Since 2021, Jacaranda Cultural Centre and Maison de la France has been a home of theatre and now, with this project, we will continue this trend,” Msiska said.
The actress, who spiced up the event with a sketch, observed that, in the past years, women were on top in terms of directing and crafting plays, citing, among others, the late Gertrude Webster Kamkwatira.
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“Now there are a few women directors. We need more. There are so many issues to be addressed out there and some can be told well by women and, so, as the project begins on 16 October 2023, women have to make sure they participate,” she said.
Playwright Fumbani Phiri, who is also the curator for Theatre in Mandala, revealed that they started the project in 2021 to give theatre players a chance to showcase their works.
“We curated a series of performances but, then, we had hiccups to sustain it due to funding and thus we decided to apply for funding and we were amongst the successful applicants,” he said.
Having received over K7 million, Phiri said they will hold workshops, to be facilitated by both local and international facilitators, which will, among others, focus on script writing and theatre as business.
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“We will pitch, hold performances and the focus is on youths, who are the backbone of the sector and women theatre makers,” he said of the project that runs for six months.
JCC Director Luc Deschamps said they were happy as a cultural centre to host Theatre in Mandala and that their vision and mission is to support the arts in the country.
“Creatives lack platforms and we have been there as a cultural centre. We would like to thank Cosoma for funding this project through Copyright Fund because the arts are the voice of the people and they play an important role in addressing issues in order to bring about change,” Deschamps said.
He said they would continue to do more to connect artists in all forms and that there were several programmes.
“Through the French Embassy, we have created links in South Africa and recently we managed to send McArthur Matukuta for theatre and Shemu Joyah for film. We will try to create bridges through embassies and organisations,” Deschamps said.
Fund Manager Blessings Botha said Copyright Fund encourages players to use public funds prudently, adding that the fund presents opportunities for growth and development in the artistic field.
