Mbare Festival
Story and photos by Stine Kronsted, Urban Designer
On a sunny Wednesday in Mbare, more than 2000 festival goers from near and far came by to support the line-up of more than 35 artists at the House of Arts Festival, the HAA Fest. Young artists from Mbare and other near-by communities showed off their talent, entertaining the audience with rap, acrobatics, percussion, poetry, dance, comedy and much more. The festival was House of Arts Association’s biggest to date.
Check out the video below!
House of Arts Festival, Mbare Community, Harare, Zimbabwe - March 11th 2020
Volunteers, artists, and people from the community were all helping out with setting up stalls, tents and the big stage at the court of the Mbare East Stadium. The festival’s location, Mbare, is the biggest slum community in Zimbabwe. With more than 450.000 citizens, it is also the area with the highest population density. Casper, Head of House of Arts says:
“It was really important for us to have the festival exactly in Mbare. Right now in Zimbabwe, so many young people are venturing in to art. We’ve got so many talented young people within our marginalised communities. Mbare is a very art oriented community. There are a lot of young musicians, dancers and street-artists. You also see it in the streets; there is a lot of graffiti and wall-art on the buildings. Those artists don’t have a platform where they can get exposed, where they can showcase their talent. The festival worked as a platform that would give them the chance to showcase what they have.”
The festival is an example of the growing movement of young people from slum communities, who come together to take the lead in creating societal change. Through the language of music, poetry and performance they want to create awareness of the challenges in slums. A lot of the young artists are pushing the boundaries by communicating the need for change in their communities and in society in general. Through the use of culture and art, they are able to question the state of things, without provoking or hurting anyone while doing it. This is how they inspire the government to cooperate and support young people in their quest to create change.
Fantastic Boys dance and acting group
Young artists listening to the performers
The transition from art to activism became particularly relevant as Nomsa Moyo Mpofu, the Deputy Director for Ministry of Youth, Sports, Arts and Recreation participated in the festival. She and her fellow members of the Ministry were there to absorb the voices of the young people, expressing their dreams for the future through art, music, drawings and writing. Furthermore, House of Arts had created a billboard where young people were encouraged to write and share their wishes and visions for their community and their dreams for the future. In the end, the billboard was presented to the Ministry of Youth. Mpofu read the needs and wishes from the youth and signed the billboard, and she thereby committed to solve the issues presented by the youth. The participation of the governmental authorities in the HAA Fest marked a big step in the advocacy work by House of Arts Association. It marked the power of linking art with activism and advocacy, thereby giving young people a voice in society.
Billboard with needs and wishes by the youth
Representative from Ministry of Youth signing the billboard
Among the invited participants were also civil society actors that are working with young people in marginalised communities, e.g. the National Aids Council and Doctors Without Borders. They were invited to spread information about their work and about how young people can make use of the organisations. The participation of these actors were directed towards the general young person and the community – for them to learn about what is happening in the community sector and see the opportunities that exist for young people through the invited organisations and institutions.
During the day, the festival was packed with people. A big audience was there to listen to and see the young artists perform. Among the artists were Fantastic Boys, Mc Doc, Tripple D, Youth and Students for Peace, Prometheus and the Hip Hop Basement, School of Music Band, Mentor, Church Boy, Ranx Tee, Milz Million, Kiddo, Rap Killer, Kuda Run It, Wallace Poem, Gully Flexors and many, many more. In the end, the festival was a platform for the growing young group of artists in Mbare and other near-by communities. Producers from record labels were there to scout talent.
“We live in communities where no one believes in young peoples’ dreams. You spend your whole life trying to follow what you think other people want you to do. Young people are afraid of showing what they want to pursue. This is a chance to show your talent, to show what you love.” - Langa, young film writer, Bulawayo.
House of Arts is a voluntary based organisation. They are a collective of young artists based in Zimbabwe. The artists are working across genres of music, dance, acrobatics, comedy, poetry, film writing, etc. They work from the belief that through the language of music and art, vulnerable young people will be empowered to make their voices heard. Examples of artistic activities they do include open mic sessions, road shows, creative space making, youth art installations in slums, and youth art exhibitions. House of Arts are working on assembling the individual artists with individual goals, dreams and career ambitions, to form a shared movement of young artists that want societal change. The overall vision of the organisation is to create a nation wide community of artist, who are all working together toward the shared vision of improving the lives of children and young people in Zimbabwe through the means of art.
Dreamtown has been working with House of Arts Association since 2018, by using art, culture, and music to mobilize young people to become active in community development, and create awareness around challenges in slums. Our work in Zimbabwe is supported by CISU and Roskilde Festival.