Indigenous storytelling forms; youth theatre company
I want to form a youth theatre company that will perform, centre and archive the use of Southern African indigenous oral storytelling forms such as Izinganekwane, Intsomi and Inshimi.
I want to address the marginalization of indigenous knowledge-making forms in the cultural sector and university structure and beyond. Most importantly I want to disrupt through storytelling the colonial borders that isolate South Africa from the rest of Africa by using Swahili language in the story. I want to bring the complexity of indigenous knowledge and forms to the centre rather than having a linear and oversimplified understanding of African indigenous knowledge.
Written documentation of the process as means of generating knowledge and publishing the stories will be a way further promote and centring indigenous ways. Publishing of the story will happen if the performance is improvised.
The theatre company can advocate to, UNESCO, the SA arts and cultural departments, teachers and parents for young people and children to engage artistic and imaginative play through indigenous storytelling. This may be viewed as a human right and vehicle to earl childhood development. Lastly Theatre Company through the act of storytelling will be honouring, and promoting indigenous knowledge and cohesion amongst Africans in the Southern part of Africa.
PROBLEM ANALYSIS
Colonial Westernised education and knowledge systems are still hegemonic in our South African education and well represented in the cultural outputs and norms.
Some young South Africans have started to challenge the non-transformed establishments. In the past few years, young people have demanded greater transformation, equality and representation in various areas of their South African lives. Even in their existence from the margins young people have been outspoken about the various injustices of South Africa.
The problem is that at times black young people’s creativity is not used as a way of exploring resilience, self-determination, human development and inclusivity. Indigenous creative-making skills such as oral storytelling forms are at the periphery of knowledge-making and the hegemony of Western creative skills is at the centre. There are few artistic interventions and indigenous play made in early schooling.
Impact
The long-term impact of the project will centre the voices of young people and children and promote indigenous storytelling and performance forms. Long-term impact can be featuring this methodology of using indigenous learning and knowledge methods as a tool for decolonisation in our schools and institutions.
A short-term impact could be that young people are able to learn, engage and be proud of their heritage or ancestry which in many cases across other races/cultures is missing. The impacts could also be a form of the language justice and indigenous culture conservation.
The direct and indirect impact is that young people and children will regenerate ideas of indigenous storytelling and performance forms. Storytelling can enhance the possibilities of resilience, and self-determination, and can be to human development and inclusivity which can contribute to youth development and Arts and Culture policy. Engage the early childhood schooling framework, key players and policy.
