Young women showcase talent during festival
Duduza - Young women from 26 art and culture groups from Gauteng showcased their talent on stage during the Gauteng Basetsana Women’s Arts Festival at the Duduza Multipurpose Centre over the weekend.
This follows the launch and introduction of the Basetsana Script Writing and Directing initiative last year.
The Gauteng MEC of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, Faith Mazibuko, says that the development of women – especially young ones – cannot be delayed any further.
“If we are serious about developing a nation we should not postpone the development and empowerment of women in all sectors, including the arts.
“Women also need to be in the forefront of writing, directing and developing new content and stories told through books, film, theatre and poetry.”
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Theatre and the arts, she adds, should not just feature women as actresses, makeup-artists or assistants.
Festival organiser Themba Vilakazi says that the initiative is aimed at getting women to play leading roles in the arts.
“A total of 60 young women were given a platform to learn more about poetry and theatre script-writing and directing.
“We are happy with the support and response from the participants. We now have young women who can write theatre scripts and express themselves better on stage,” he says.
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Themba says that they will soon be hosting auditions for theatre groups.
“Those who are interested can call 083 507 8068/ 011 355 2578 for more information.”
