Chronicle Editor
Mthabisi Tshuma, Showbiz Correspondent
Chaplin High School has something good going on as its theatre club is churning out polished students who are putting to great use, skills they will have been equipped with during their stint at the school in Gweru.
With over 50 pupils, the club is fully fledged as it focuses on all aspects from lighting, sound, props, make-up/costuming, acting, dancing and singing.
Located at the centre of the City of Progress, just a stone’s throw away from the council chambers, the school is acting as a good training ground for arts in the country if its products including Farai Chigumbu (founder of the Midlands Teen Awards) and Varaidzo Chikarakara (Nashville Heights actor) are anything to go by.
Through their musical and theatrical projects, the club has in recent years, been sparking various auditoriums where they have been performing. For their efforts, they have won the National Association of Secondary School Heads (Nash) competitions at provincial and national level.
Impressively, the club has won this competition at provincial level from 2013 to 2019. In 2017, they were the national champions. Among those who have been through this theatre club are Chikarakara who is starring in the Nashville Heights sitcom which airs on ZBCtv. Another is singer, Sarah Masango who is now part of the acclaimed Joyful Praise Choir.
Sixteen-year-old Chigumbu who rose to stardom recently after he staged the inaugural Midlands Teen Awards is another proud product of the Chaplin High theatre club.
Behind this success story are the theatre club’s principal directors, Victor Nyamayedenga and Tinashe Nic Magarira who have been taking charge with the support of four other teachers.
Nyamayedenga who has been the patron for eight years said their main mission has been to train the students to be able to tell the Zimbabwean story. “Chaplin Theatre Club was formed in 1902 which means it’s as old as the school.
The history of the club can be better appreciated in phases and historical records show that in the pre-independence phase, the club was quite vibrant. The notable phases are the post-independence phase from 1980-2010 and the post-independence phase from 2010 till today.
“The mission of the club has been about entertaining and educating while at the same time upholding the spirit of Unhu/Ubuntu. The club envisions creating an artiste who lives up to the Zimbabwean values and tells the Zimbabwean story in a uniquely Zimbabwean way,” said Nyamayedenga. He said the club has been performing exceptionally well as evidenced by the accolades they have bagged.
“The club has won theatrical achievements that include, National Arts Merit Awards (Nama) Special Mention (2016), National Association of Secondary School Heads (Nash) bronze medalist (2014), Nash silver medalists (2015), National Annual Science Sports and Arts Festival (Nassaf) gold medalists (2017) and Midlands Teen Arts Award (MTAA) award for Best Theatrical Production in 2019-2020,” he said.
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