The Baxter’s Zabalaza Theatre Festival

 
 
 
 
 
 

Creativity, when given encouragement and opportunity, knows no limitation

Zabalaza is a Baxter Theatre Centre Development Programme that develops theatre practitioners from in and around the Western Cape in partnership with DCAS by providing them with performance platforms so that they can realise their creative concepts. This is achieved through mini-festivals in target communities, script readings, showcases and a theatre festival held at the Baxter Theatre Centre annually in March.

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

Zabalaza process and programmes

The following activities occur over a 12-month period. Activities often run concurrently, therefore one cycle of activity may overlap with the next.

Aims and objectives

  • To encourage and contribute 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.

  • To provide an ongoing skills programme in areas of theatre-making to upcoming artists.

  • To identify raw talents in the community theatre groups and expose them to theatre of a professional standard.

  • To promote and build a culture of attending theatre among new audiences.

  • To provide mentorship/internships to deserving individuals (writers, directors, stage managers, actors, etc.) who would like to take up theatre as a career.

  • To provide guidance and information where necessary to upcoming artists.

 Programmes

Identify and nurture talent

Visit theatre groups and companies in and around Western Cape
Attend theatre festivals in the Western Cape

Build theatre audiences

Encourage and build a culture of attending theatre for new audiences
Create full theatre experiences for audiences as well as performers

Create performance platforms through the following activities

Mini-festivals
Main Festival (with an award ceremony)
Community theatre group showcases

Skills development workshops

Stage management
Script-writing/devising a production
Directing
Acting
Arts administration and management
Theatre design
Marketing

Mentorship/Internship programmes:

Adopt/mentor a theatre group initiative
Joint productions
Young writers’ initiative (script development)
The Finest of the Fest

 Call to participate in the Zabalaza Theatre Festival

A call goes out annually around July for anyone who is interested in staging a production at the Zabalaza Theatre Festival.

  • Auditions and revisits

All applicants from the City of Cape Town are contacted to arrange an audition/showcase session in which the team go to the applicants’ rehearsal spaces to watch a 15 minute audition piece and provide detailed feedback. Based on the outcomes of the audition process, selected groups/individuals are revisited and assessed on whether or not they have incorporated the feedback notes from the auditions.

  • Community mini-festivals

Selected productions are then invited to participate in mini festivals. These take place in various communities in and around the Western Cape. Mini festivals have been hosted in the communities of Robertson, Kraaifontein, Stellenbosch, Khayelitsha, Langa, Delft, Nyanga East and Athlone to name a few. Depending on the number of applications from each community, Zabalaza is committed to bringing mini festivals to as many of the communities across the province as possible. We strongly believe in taking the theatre to the people.

  • The Baxter Zabalaza Main Festival

The Zabalaza Theatre Festival takes over the Baxter Theatre Centre every March, invading all the Baxter’s spaces to create a festive atmosphere. Community theatre groups are given the opportunity to present their plays on a professional performance platform. Approximately 50 new theatre works, many of them in indigenous languages, are created annually.

The Baxter Marketing team assists all participating productions to market their shows, however, participants are encouraged to take a BIG PART in the selling of their production as all the door takings go straight to the participants. The Baxter does not take any of the ticket sales. In the past, participants have been able to generate enough income to enable them to extend the life of their productions by re-staging it elsewhere or to create new productions.

Golden Arrow Bus Services provides transport for audiences to attend the festival at a very low cost (R10.00). Please note that these buses mainly operate during school hours. Should you required further information on the Golden Arrow buses please contact Carmen Kearns (carmen.kearns@uct.ac.za) and Nontsikelelo Maboza (nontsikelelo.maboza@uct.ac.za).

  • Finest of the Fest

Every year one or more production is awarded the winner of Zabalaza Finest of the Fest. The winning production goes through a mentorship process to raise the standard of the work before it is mounted for a two week season at the Baxter. This provides the company with another opportunity to stage their work in a professional theatre with full logistical support.

  • Bursary

For the past four years we have partnered with City Varsity and ACT Cape Town for the bursary program that takes one participant for a degree, diploma, or certificate in creative arts courses.

Applicants from outside the Western Cape

Zabalaza’s focus is on the communities in and around the Western Cape  we work with the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports as this is where we are based and where our main funders request that we utilize their grants. In the past we have been able to audition productions and invited productions from other provinces such as in the Eastern Cape, Johannesburg and Kwa Zulu-Natal, but this is dependent on funding.

Zabalaza encourages theatre-makers, who have funding, to bring their productions to the Zabalaza Theatre Festival. Some of the productions that have been awarded the Best of Zabalaza production and provided a professional season at the Baxter are:

2013 – Skierliek by Phillip Dikotla (Gauteng)

2015 – Fruit by Paul Noko (Gauteng)

 Programmes in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports

The Western Cape consists of six districts: City of Cape Town, Cape Winelands, Eden, Overberg, West Coast and Central Karoo. The Western Cape Department of Arts and Culture, together with Zabalaza, aims to create drama festivals in all of the districts. To date we have managed to create festivals in the following districts:

  • Cape Winelands

  • Eden

  • Overberg

  • West Coast

We would like to encourage more artists in the West Coast and Central Karoo to make sure that they take part in these exciting programmes as the Cape Winelands, Eden and Overberg Drama Festivals are growing every year. Should you be interested in participating in these festivals, please contact the DCAS Project Manager, Mr Moeniel Jacobs (Moeniel.Jacobs@westerncape.gov.za).

Every June we host a 3-day script-writing workshop, in which writers are invited to develop their skills. These writers are asked to go back to their communities and create productions to be staged in a showcase in August. Selected productions from the showcase are invited to attend another 3-day workshop in September, where the focus is on acting, directing and the development of their scripts.

The best productions from these showcases are awarded a place in the Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival programme. These productions also participate in the annual Suidoostefees at Artscape, and a select few are also granted the opportunity to participate in either the ABSA KKNK in Oudtshoorn or the Best of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport.

Zabalaza, in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports, have been nominating actors and actresses, who have won awards at the mini-festivals, to audition for cameo roles on well-known South African television productions such as 7de Laan and Suidooster. All those that have auditioned, have been awarded cameo roles:

2016:     William Michaels, Robyn September and Llewellyn Bond (Suidooster– Suidooster Production Company)

2014:     Thabiso Newman & Samantha Pienaar (7de Laan – Danie Odendaal Productions)

2013:     Olivia Pika & Julian van der Westhuizen (7de Laan – Danie Odendaal Productions)

2012:     William Michaels & Melloney Marais (7de Laan – Danie Odendaal Productions)

 Best of Zabalaza Winners

2022
Hostel Lights directed by Sohail  Booise
Back to Ashes by Molupi Lepdi

2021
Blood On The Road  directed by Wendy Mrali
Ganga Nyoko! Inzima Nyoko!  directed by Siphenathi Siqwyi
Thank You for your service directed by  Buhle Qhinga and Aphiwe Livi
Heads or Tails directed by Robyn September

2020
First Accused by Mava Silimko

2019
Die 9de Maand by Tyron Zoutman
Ukuwa Kwe Nkaba by Mthombisi Mpandle

2018
Onweer by Carlo Daniels

2017
Boy Ntulikazi by Thobani Nzuza and Kagiso Tsimakwane

2016
TIP-ex by Lauren Hannie

2015
Fruit by Paul Noko

2014
The Champion by Khayalethu Anthony
(winner of the Fresh Award for Writing at the 2017 Cape Town Fringe Festival)

2013
Skierlik by Phillip Dikotla
(winner of the Olive Schreiner Prize)

2012
Worst of Both Worlds by Bulelani Mabutyana

2011
Uhlazo by Loyiso Damoyi

Most of the previous winning productions have had the opportunity to participate in other festivals and tour across South Africa, even being invited to participate in international festivals.

 Zabalaza management team

The team heading up the festival is Mdu Kweyama (artistic director) and Bulelani Mabutyana (Coordinator) Imameleng Masitha (administrator) and Nontsikelelo Maboza ( Audience Development). The core team is complemented by a number of fieldworkers/facilitators who assist on an ad-hoc basis in preparing works for the festival. These fieldworkers/facilitators consist of various artistic experts who play the role of mentors to these theatre groups leading up to the festival’s opening. In the past, we have had the privilege of working with renowned artists such as Faniswa Yisa, Gay Morris, Lauren Snyders, Mzi Vava, Abdu Adams, Kanya Viljoen, Carlo Daniles, Miliswa Mbandazana, and Khayalethu Anthony to name a few.

The Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival team intends to ensure that this premier development platform – arguably one of the top of its kind in South Africa – forms a fundamental part of The Baxter’s broader vision to be a vibrant and integrated cultural hub, reflecting the diversity of the country’s demographics for all its patrons, communities, artists and visitors.

South African and African themes are given voice and visibility through the Zabalaza activities.  

 Questions / Get in touch

Zabalaza Office
zabalazafestival@uct.ac.za
(021) 680 7880

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