Abstract
Popular theatre can articulate issues in a manner that mainstream communication spaces cannot. In Matabeleland, theatre makers have used theatre as a tool for mobilisation and resistance, and a platform to fight against real or perceived injustices. Theatre is a site of hegemonic contest between the ruling establishment and various local groups that have taken the task of being the voice of the voiceless. Using a historical approach, we trace the development of theatre in independent Zimbabwe and its place in relations between the people of the region and the state. We argue that because of real or imagined marginalisation of the region, popular theatre in Matabeleland has historically been part of radical protest culture.
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Notes
- 1.
Gukurahundi (recognised as a genocide by the UN affiliated Genocide Watch) refers to the massacre of predominantly Ndebele-speaking supporters of Joshua Nkomo’s (one of the leaders of the liberation movements in Zimbabwe) PF-ZAPU from early 1983 to 1987 by a North Korean-trained crack army unit, the Fifth Brigade, code-named the Gukurahundi. According to many authoritative estimates (CCJP 1997), over 10,000 people died in what is now recognised as an ethnic cleansing campaign to decimate mainly Ndebele-speaking PF-ZAPU supporters. Because of failure to find a lasting resolution, this episode remains a sore spot in Zimbabwe’s history.
- 2.
The most enduring aspect of the Economic Structural Adjustment Programme in Zimbabwe which was launched in 1991 was the severe austerity measures intended to reduce government expenditure and to increase productivity. As part of the cost-cutting measures many workers were laid off in both the public and the private sectors, which led to a spike in unemployment.
- 3.
ESAP was an International Monetary Fund and World Bank-backed economic programme for African countries. Far from delivering the intended economic growth, it led to massive company closures, retrenchment and other problems such as housing and transport crises. For a more complete understanding of ESAP in Zimbabwe, Alois Mlambo’s book The Economic Structural Adjustment Programme is recommended.
- 4.
Many songs by popular Ndebele singer/song writer Lovemore Majaivana, for instance, express these sentiments.
- 5.
These groups included among others: Young Actors and Writers Union, Bulawayo United Writers Club, Vumani Sketch Group, Vultures Drama Group, Progress Culture Centre, Amasilo Drama Club, Young Warriors, Tose-Sonke, Iluba Elimnyama, Isizwe SikaMthwakazi Actors and Singers, AmaSwazi Performing Arts, Assegai Theatre Arts, Royal Warriors, Drama Force, Core Force, Bazooka, Strong Wave, Kuwirirana, Bulawayo East and West Writers and Actors, Tropical S, Phakama and many others (Dube 1992, p. 45).
- 6.
It is important to note that ATP was a member of the NTO. The other notable theatre organisation that had NTO membership was Harare-based Rooftop Players and Promotions, now Rooftop Promotions.
- 7.
The Fifth Brigade who carried out Operation Gukurahundi wore red berets as part of their regalia. These hats are, even now, frightening to many people in the south-western regions of Zimbabwe.
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Mpofu, M., Moyo, C., Sibanda, N. (2021). Popular Theatre as a Struggle for Identity and Representation in Matabeleland: 1980 to the Present. In: Ravengai, S., Seda, O. (eds) Theatre from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe. Contemporary Performance InterActions. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74594-3_9
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