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Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
THE Bulawayo Arts Awards held last weekend are still the talk of town as they were well organised and managed to unite people in the city.

So successful were the awards that organisers were overwhelmed by the support they got from attendees and sponsors. The event was oversubscribed with 1 400 people said to have attended.

One of the organisers, Raisedon Baya, said they did not expect to see so many people come to the awards.

“We were overwhelmed by the numbers of people who came to the awards. We honestly didn’t think people would come and support us.

“We were going in blind, but as the weeks and days drew closer, it dawned on us that we might pull it off judging by the response we got,” said Baya.

He said planning for the awards started in earnest as they wanted to make the awards show memorable adding that plans for next year’s edition were already underway.

“We’ll tweak it here and there for next year as this was a learning curve for us. We set the bar high and we’ll endeavour to make next year’s show much better.

“What was evident was that a bigger venue would be a good idea because judging from the response, I’m sure more people would want to be part of the awards, but we’ll weigh our options.”

The BAA organisers thanked the corporate world and individuals who funded the awards.

“There’re too many people to mention who supported us, but they all showed that they have the arts at heart. From the people who volunteered their time and expertise and those who sponsored awards, we thank them as it made our job easy and it was a collective effort,” said Baya.

These were the talking points at the BAA.

Red Carpet

The people of Bulawayo were clothed to the nines as they heeded the call to dress up. Women were in all sorts of elegant dresses that captured the essence of an awards night adding to the glitz and glam.

The Most Outlandish outfit gong went to Sarah Mpofu-Sibanda who waltzed onto the red carpet wearing a brown dress that had a revealing slit in front with the hems of the piece attached to her wrists.

Performances

Everyone who watched the show online and in the audience applauded the well-choreographed dance routines from the opening act of the awards. A pat on the back is well deserved for the trio of Ricco Andrews, Richard Ndlovu and Ralph Malingwa who were responsible for the choreography.
All artistes who performed including Luke Delukes and Willis Wataffi who did a rendition of Matonto’s Ncam Ncam, Ramsy K, Khuxxman, Kadder and Khoikhoi, Asaph, Mzoe 7, Sandra Ndebele and Madlela Skhobokhobo did a splendid job.

Presenters

From the red carpet to the main stage, the presenters were flawless. On the red carpet it was Morris Touch, a radio and TV veteran who took care of business, aptly backed by new presenters Bathabile Dlamini and Cde Phil. On the main stage, Chief Koti, poet Sithandazile Dube and actress/MC Charlene Mangweni went about their job without a glitch with Master Eli announcing the awards that were up for grabs professionally.
Bulawayo Public

The general public should take a bow because they came out in their numbers to support the awards. They bought tickets for the general section that was $5 and the VIP and VVIP were $10 and $15 respectively and filled the Large City Hall. This for organisers was overwhelming as they did not expect such a huge turnout.

Zimpapers live streaming of the awards

Those who had good Internet connection kept glued to their smart phones and TVs around the world as Zimpapers broadcast the event live using Facebook Live.