TEN groups from Bulawayo will battle it out at the Chibuku Neshamwari Festival scheduled to roar into life at Habane beerhall in Esigodini this Saturday.
BY SHARON SIBINDI
The groups set for battle are Khaya Arts, Imvimbi Arts, Ingwenyama Arts, Woza Africa Arts, Sekunjalo Ma Africa, Iluba le Mvelo, Abangane, Jaiva Traditional Group, Thandanani Women Ensemble and Bambanani.
Guest group, Ezimnyama Dance Ensemble, will share the stage with the competing outfits during the event organised by Zimbabwe National Traditional Dancers Association (ZNTDA) and facilitated by the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ).
The festival, which is bankrolled by Delta’s Chibuku brand, will start in the morning and run until late.
ZNTDA president, Kennedy Kachuruka told NewsDay that the winner will pocket $500, and $300 and $200 for the first and second runners up, respectively.
The rest and the guest groups will get $100 participation fee each.
Kachuruka said the groups will be expected to perform dances like isitshikitsha, umzansi, setapa and amabhiza.
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“Adjudication will include entry of stage, stage formation, costume, originality of dance and effort. Each group will be given 10 minutes to perform and it should be pure traditional dance,” he said.
Kachuruka said the national finals will be in Bulawayo, with the winner set to receive $7 000, first runner up $5 000 and the second $3 000.
He said all the competitors at the national competitions will have their requirements sponsored.
Khaya Arts founder, Future Dube, said they were happy to be among this year’s participants and they were ready to do battle.
“We are happy to be part of the 10 groups and we will also present muchongoyo dance,” he said.
