The annual Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival will take place at the Baxter with 32 brand new productions from across the Western Cape in the first week of April.
Now in its twelfth year, the festival will for the first time be a product of hybrid mentorship programmes that include script-writing mentorship for writers, as well as mentorship workshops for directors to produce cutting-edge developmental theatre.
The festival will begin with Family Day on Saturday 2 April, curated by the Fun Squad, that includes a variety of food stalls and a jumping castle for children. Performances for children will run from 09:45 to noon.
A showcase of the best of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport – annual invitees to the festival – also takes place on the day with participants from the Overberg, Cape Winelands, West Coast and the Garden Route districts.
For adults, the Saturday evening offers a selection of performance experiences.
A poetry performance takes place in the Baxter Garden at 17:00 and theatre-lovers can experience Shadows of the Past at the same time in the Golden Arrow Studio.
Real Art Wednesdays (RAW) returns to the line-up with a platform for a variety of talented performers, in the Concert Hall at 19:30.
The 32 productions on the main festival, from Monday 4 to Friday 8 April, with performances at 09:45, 11:00, 12:00 and 19:00 daily, were selected from the mini festivals which were held over two weekends at the end of January at the Delft Rent Office, Kraai4theatre in Kraaifontein and the Makukhanye Art Room in Khayelitsha.
The gala awards ceremony will take place on Saturday 9 April, where various productions and artists will be chosen in various categories and the Best of Zabalaza winner (which benefits from a two-week run at the Baxter in August) will be announced.
The festival is curated by Mdu Kweyama (artistic director and curator), along with Zabalaza team members, Bulelani Mabutyana (coordinator), Tshegofatso Mabutla (festival administrator) and Nonsikelelo Maboza (audience development).
Schools and organisations with group bookings have the option of affordable transportation offered by Golden Arrow Bus services, who support the festival yearly, at R5 per person, for groups of more than 40, with a strict maximum of 60 people per bus.
- For school or group bookings, fundraisers or charities contact Carmen Kearns on 021 680 3993 or email her at carmen.kearns@uct.ac.za or Nontsikelelo Maboza on 021 680 3984 or email her at nonstikelelo.maboza@uct.ac.za
Tickets are R30 per show and available through Webtickets on 086 111 0005, online at www.webtickets.co.za or at Pick n Pay stores.
