Chronicle Editor
Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
Adapting to the new way of life following Covid-19 restrictions on physical interactions, play, Amavuso the Blesser/Blessee Phenomenon is being produced using new technology with rehearsals and recordings being conducted through Zoom Meeting Rooms.
The play by actors based in both Zimbabwe and South Africa intends to give audiences a feel of the interactions between ‘blessers’ and ‘blessees’.
The project is a collaboration between Sibikwa Arts Centre (South Africa) and Nhimbe Trust (Zimbabwe). It aims to portray authentic and diverse perspectives on what’s widely known as the ‘blesser’ phenomenon, an increasingly accepted popular culture.
The play has award-winning actor Charmaine Mudau and Agnes Ncube who were rehearsing in Zimbabwe while Eutychia Rakaki and Dineo Komane were doing the same in South Africa. The actors were chosen through online auditions.
This whole process was directed through the Zoom application by Zimkhitha Kumbata who is based in South Africa.
This is the way things are being conducted in the new normal according to Kumbata who urged the artistes to quickly adapt if they want to remain relevant.
“Rehearsing via Zoom is a very plausible route. It has its pros and cons though so it needs a lot of commitment as you would for a normal rehearsal in a theatre.It needs the actors to be very committed on the project,” said Kumbata.
She however said it was not all smooth sailing as they faced some technical challenges in the process.
“It needs whoever is directing to be patient with the process because obviously, there’ll be tricky moments like when the connection (internet) goes off or you run out of data. Data is very expensive in South Africa and Zimbabwe. Also, you can have data, but the network may be down and it’s very frustrating,” said Kumbata.
She however said this had been a good learning curve for her, adding that the experience broadened her scope.
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