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Mthabisi Tshuma/Angela Sibanda, Showbiz Reporters

UNSTOPPABLE best describes the nature of the dance outfit Asante Mo which has shaken the nation and is gaining ground at the regional level with its unique talent.

The group which hails from Bulawayo was formed in May last year and a year later, they are already one of the sought-after dance groups with their Afro-tech, which is a combination of drums and decks.

The outfit is comprised of three members, Aaron Chikondawanga aka DJ Beast, Bekithemba Phiri aka Beckx Marabha and Newman Trinidad aka Daiman.

Having left the capital, Harare in awe with their breathtaking performance recently, the heavens have smiled down upon the trio as they are billed to perform at the Jika International Theatre Dance Festival (JITDF) taking place in South Africa next week.

The group will represent Zimbabwe alongside Midlands State University students under the Media, Communication, Film and Theatre Department.

The festival is a concept inspired by the National Arts Fringe Festival in Makhanda, Eastern Cape Province, as well as Kenya International Theatre Festival in Nairobi. Running under the theme

“Repositioning the role of theatre in society”, the four-day festival will kick off next week Wednesday. It will offer a platform for theatre, dance, poetry companies, and organisations to showcase their works to a variety of audiences in Bloemfontein.

Asante Mo said they are elated to have been invited to such an event.

“On December 1 and 2, we’ll be performing at Bloemfontein Civic Theatre and this will be our very first tour as Asante Mo. As a new group in the industry, we’re happy with our growth as we’ve managed to spread our acts across the country in a year. This shows the future is bright,” said Daiman.
He said they landed the SA gig after interactions with the founder of the festival in Harare.

“We got to know about this festival in September when we were networking with artistes during the Mitambo International Festival. We met the festival director Goitsemang who watched our energetic performance and promised to meet us in Bloemfontein.”

For the SA festival, Daiman said they will showcase their IHossana production which tells the story of the Southern African people who used to dance, sing and drum for rainmaking.

MSU students, on the other hand, are set to showcase a play entitled 1894 which was written in 2019.

The production is a result of a community engagement programme where the university partnered with some community members from Bulawayo. It premiered for the first time at the Mitambo festival and got a good reception.

Written by one of the theatre lecturers at the university, the film was directed by Bulawayo-based Thulani Mbambo.

Mbambo described the play as an African-centred production that tells the story of the Ndebele King Lobengula.

“This production follows the untold stories about the disappearance of the last king of AmaNdebele, King Lobengula, through the eyes of one BaTonga man called Twalumba. The story also highlights the challenges faced by royal wives, the cultural beliefs and the sacredness of practices among other things,” he said.

The JITDF Opening Night is set to spice up the festival mood with its open mic session.

The festival continues to be a journey of hope, happiness, memories, and an attempt at maintaining the necessary revolution for the existence of theatre. It is informed and continues to support the current theatrical activities around the African continent with the high level of sophistication existent among theatre practitioners.

“Participants will have an opportunity to interact, share skills, critic and form memories with other artists from around the continent, provinces and districts through an interactive platform titled ‘Artiste on Spot’,” event organisers said.