The Harare Gardens were transformed into an art lover’s paradise during the annual Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA), which took place in May.

The dawn of a new political era in Zimbabwe has brought hope to the country, and even inspired the arts. It is in this spirit that HIFA brought together film and art lovers from Zimbabwe and the rest of the world to enjoy a feast of ballet, rhymes, funky fashion, break dance and contemporary dance moves.

Now in its tenth year, HIFA is a multi-cultural celebration that showcases the best of Zimbabwean arts and culture as well as facilitating collaborative projects with regional and international artists and performers. The theme of this year’s festival was Enligh10ment.

Founder and Artistic Director at HIFA Manuel Bagorro says the theme was an attempt to represent the present tentative optimism and future hopes of people in Zimbabwe.

‘After what has been an undeniably dark and troubled time for the country, the festival happened at a time when people could begin to imagine an environment in which reason, creativity, compassion, justice and enlightened thinking were valued and celebrated as enthusiastically as they would be at HIFA 2009.’

The HIFA-Direct mentorship project, a collaboration between HIFA and the British Council, was also part of the festival. The British Council-funded initiative mentors and nurtures young theatre directors, writers, designers and actors and has had many successes over the past two years, including invitations for productions to tour internationally.

One of the HIFA-Direct plays showcased this year was Allegations.

‘Written by Mandisi Gobodi, Allegations tells a moving story of a black farmer, who had his house burnt during a politically motivated attack, and a white commercial farmer, who has lost his farm and his father during a farm invasion. Allegations talks about the journey of these two who met and realised they had more in common than they previously imagined,’ says Bagorro.

Bagorro says visitors were able to see the colourful side of the country that isn’t normally shown in the media.

Apart from the art, visitors enjoyed performances from the Drakenseberg Boys Choir, a ballet performance entitled A Spring of Rosemary and some fabulous Indian dance moves, performed by girls from Westridge School.

South African afro pop group Malaika kept the audience dancing to its tunes while Breaking Barricades, a show featuring musical and dance expression from Norway and Mozambique, was a high-energy experience.

On First Street dancers entertained the crowds during lunch and break dancers set the streets on fire with their body-bending dance moves.

Within walking distance of the Gardens is Mbare Market, the nation’s largest market, where visitors could find all sorts of craft work for sale, including baskets, masks, soapstone carvings, spears, gemstones and beads.

Bagorro expressed appreciation to the British Council for being willing to fund the HIFA-Direct project as it has turned out to be a great success.

‘It was clear from the early discussions that there was intense interest from the artistic community, particularly in the idea of working with and exchanging skills with British mentors.’

During breaks visitors enjoyed browsing First Street Mall and visiting the National Gallery, which houses a collection of African art and specialises in Shona stone sculpture.

Bagorro says that audience enthusiasm has grown each year; the most talked-about plays this year were both HIFA-Direct productions.

HIFA-Direct project coordinator Zane Lucas says all the plays produced as part of the project are successes in their own right, though the more controversial pieces get the most attention.

‘Loupe, which premiered last year, and Allegations from this year’s festival are two such plays. Both written by Mandisi Gobodi and directed by Patience Tawengwa, the plays have received critical acclaim and, in the case of Loupe, been invited to other festivals’.

Another play, Disconnection, told a painful story of the tough choices that many Zimbabwean families have had to make in the past few years, choices that often lead to the separation of families.

Lucas says that 11 productions, under the banner of the Hi-Five programme and HIFA-Direct, have been presented by the British Council since the project started. Hi-Five was a mentoring programme for up-and-coming writers in Zimbabwe.

Bagorro hopes that that the relationship with the British Council will continue for many years.

‘I hope to continue working with the British Council to nurture many more groups of HIFA-Direct writers and directors and look at ways to increase the opportunities for young Zimbabwean and British theatre practitioners to come together and collaborate.’

To find out more and be a part of HIFA, click here. The British Council hosts several events monthly in offices around Africa. You can read more about what the British Council does in Africa, as well as scheduled upcoming events.