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30 THE INDEPENDENT December 16 - 22, 2011

CONNECTING WITH

THE CROWD

Mashirika embodies theatre’s poten

al

7/29/2019 Mashirka performs

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BY CASSANDRA LUKWAGO

Agroup of girls—aged five

to eight—rush onto thestage in bright red dress-es. They perform a songabout HIV/AIDS—thetheme of the night’s per-formance. The girls are

followed on stage by a boy who succumbsto the temptations of an older womanonly to have his romance unearthed byan enraged girlfriend. Through a mix-ture of light, costume and musical eff ects,the girlfriend’s anger is so palpable thatmany in the audience wince as the couple begin to fight on stage. Body languagesupplants dialogue as the main form ofcommunication to account for the multi-lingual crowd that is present.

The artists behind the show---Mashirika creative and performingarts group—started in 1998 when HopeAzeda, then a student of music danceand drama at Makerere Universitywas discovered by the then director ofinformation Radio Rwanda during oneof her performances. Azeda was invited back to Rwanda where she spent threemonths at Radio Rwanda learning Kin-yarwanda before starting the group.

At the time, the theater scene in

Rwanda was just beginning. Accordingto Azeda, the commonest art form wasradio dramas. “I realized that theatre isnot about construction,” she recounts.“It’s about creating a space for dialogueand communal sharing.”

As they developed as an act, Mashirika began to tackle themes l ike community,water, HIV, genocide and nutrition onstage—always using body language,costumes and music to underscore theirmessage. The group and acts consistsof people who sing, dance, act andplay instruments. Skills, moreover, arecontinuously shared and passed on

 between group members.Now with 25 permanent members,

they are more a family then a business.Some members live in Uganda andothers in Kenya, but when there is aperformance, they all come to Rwanda.Sometimes schedules are so tight thatscripts and synopses are sent by e-mail, but this never prevents a performancefrom taking place.

Angel Uwamahoro, a lead dancerand administrative coordinator forMashirika, joined when she was15-years old. She was introduced to thegroup when Azeda was amongst the

 judges for a school play she wrote andlater won first place for. Now 21, Uwa-mahoro says Mashirika is a good placefor teens because of its inherent disci-pline. “Mashirika makes being goodlook cool,” she explains. “Not like otherplaces where being bad is the thing.”

However, to pull off a performancea lot of preparation and training isrequired. Mashirika members attendworkshops with choreographers fromUganda, Ivory Coast, Ghana and the-

atre professors from the United States.Moreover, for three months in 2008,Mashirika went on a tour of the UKwhere they showcased one of their mostfamous performances about the geno-

cide 110 times, while also partaking in50 workshops to educate people aboutthe genocide.

The group has also helped to expandthe frontiers of theatre in the country.Isôko, which translates to “the source”is another theater group that uses theart “for social harmony and culturalgrowth in Rwanda.” Isoko is currentlyworking on the third installment of their“Trilogy of Time.” The first two partsdepicted Rwanda’s past and presentand the third will be about Rwanda’sfuture.

The Ishyo cultural development

centre, which helps to bring togetherartists, singers and dancers, in additionto drama clubs in schools and organ-isations such as Umurinzi and YWCARwanda, have also helped promote the-atre in Rwanda and use it as a means toreach and educate people.

Mashirika, adds Azeda, is open toreceiving new members and so long asyou have talent and dedication, you arewelcome. Mashirika believes that weall have a performer inside. To quote aZimbabwean proverb: “If you can walkyou can dance [and] if you can talk youcan sing.”

For three months in 2008,Mashirika went on a tourof the UK where they

showcased one of theirmost famous performancesabout the genocide 110times, while also partakingin 50 workshops to educatepeople about the genocide.

31THE INDEPENDENT December 16 - 22, 2011

Culture

Young performers assist Mashirika perform a showthat addresses the issues of HIV/AIDS