In what promises to be Maitisong’s biggest festival yet, a range of local talent is expected to grace the event through a plethora of artistic disciplines. The festival, which is an infusion of theatre, dance, music, comedy and poetry, is set to entertain audiences with Botswana’s established and emerging talents. Amongst the theatric pieces that will be showcasing during this five day event is a play entitled Ketswakae; a love story of introspection.
According to Marang Molosiwa, who is co-directing the play with Mamohato Askew, the piece is a love story between people coming from two different worlds in the pursuit of something similar. “The story is a beautiful, passionate take on love and it details how affection can happen in the most unexpected ways,” enthused Molosiwa. “I won’t give out too many spoilers as we want the audience to be surprised,” she chuckled.
The title directly translates to ‘where I am from’ and reveals some of the themes the play undertakes. “We wanted to explore issues of displacement, identity, oppression and tribalism that exist even in the context of a relationship. The narrative will surely make the audience ponder on the issues this society often turns a blind eye to,” she added.
Inspired by the controversial relationship the Basarwa have with the government, Marang mentioned how they wanted to look into the issue in a unique way. “One of the characters in the play is a Mosarwa and Basarwa are known to be an ethnic group that endure oppression and are undermined as a minority group. People should come and see our offering as we will be tackling this issue in a way that is artistic and meaningful,” said Marang.
She describes the play as very experimental as it uses different styles of theatre, movement and a technique called in-yer-face, adding that the show also involves social commentary. “This is a work-shopped piece we refine every day. It is a collaborative act between me and Umbambi Ndiwenyu and we would really appreciate the support of Batswana. We want to deviate from the clich├® drama skits and offer better productions,” she said.
Marang is renowned for her Mantlwaneng days and has blossomed into a drama graduate from the University of Pretoria. She has been part of productions such as SABC’s Untold Stories. “From a young age I developed a deep love for acting and theatre. It is something I’m glad I pursued professionally,” stated Molosiwa. Umbambi Ndiwenyu is a local comedian, actor and dancer.
The show is scheduled to showcase Thursday April 23 at Thapong Visual Arts Center and Saturday April 25 at Mantlwaneng Theatre. “We intend to do more quality productions. We put in a lot of hours to rehearse to ensure the content exceeds the expectations of the audience. I have a great team and we are excited and honoured to be part of this festival,” said Marang.
Tickets are available from all Spar Outlets, Maitisong and Webtickets for P50. For more information about the festival visit www.maitisong.org
