RENOWNED playwright, director and arts administrator Raisedon Baya has challenged Bulawayo thespians to be passionate about theatre and performances, following the unmet potential of the art in the city, as the world celebrated World Theatre Day yesterday.
March 27, World Theatre Day, is an annual celebration initiated in 1962 by the International Theatre Institute (ITI).
It is celebrated by ITI Centres and the international theatre community.
Various national and international theatre events are organised to mark this occasion.
In a statement, Baya expressed his mixture of sadness and guilt saying there has been a lot of lip service.
“Today marks World Theatre Day and I’m filled with a mix of sadness and guilt. I had hoped to celebrate by attending a live performance, unfortunately, I’m not aware of any shows happening in my city,” he said.
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“Last year, I vowed to do something to commemorate this day, but time slipped away, and I did nothing.
“Now, I’ll likely hear speeches about the importance of theatre, but honestly, theatre doesn’t need words, it needs action.
“It needs to be seen, to be experienced. No more lip service. Let’s bring theatre to life! Our city needs regular performances.”
Baya said there had been a lot of silence with many layers and different meanings, threatening the city’s arts industry.
“It’s the silence caused by no material and no structures to sustain theatre; the silence of working in silos; the silence of losing the importance of one of the critical arts forms and the silence caused by lack of planning, lack of actors and directors, lack of resources, lack of proper theatre venues. It is a lot,” he said.
Meanwhile, Baya’s notable works include Super Patriots and Morons, Madmen and Fools, and The Crocodile of Zambezi, the latter earned him the Novib-PEN International Freedom of Expression Award.
He is a writer not to ignore, as his stories are known for leaving a bitter taste in one’s mouth.
Some of his plays are daring, thought-provoking and prophetic.
“Theatre just needs us to be unselfish,” he said, “to find those passionate enough and make them collaborate, not just on making good theatre, but creating visible footprints for others to follow.”
