Sandra Ndebele heads to Russia

Sandra Ndebele

BULAWAYO’S leading songstress and dancer Sandra Ndebele and her dance crew Intombi Zomqangala yesterday left the country for a month-long tour of Russia.  The all-female ensemble is set to showcase their debut production The Princess of Africa at the White Night Festival in Perm, Russia. Ndebele said eight girls would represent the country at the international fete.

“We are leaving the country tomorrow for Russia where we will be conducting a number of workshops in Perm. We will go out in the community to teach and nurture young aspiring dancers in Russia,” said Ndebele.

Ndebele will star as the main actress in the play The Princess of Africa, which was first showcased at the Harare International Festival of Arts in 2008. Ndebele said the second group of girls would leave for England on 15 June for the National Student Drama Festival in Sheffield.

One of the dancers Thandeka Zana said she was looking forward to the tour. “We are looking forward to represent ourselves as women. We will be representing the girl child through theatre and dance,” said Zana.

The group, comprising young women aged between 16 and 30, will be performing at the International Student Drama festival from June 22 to 30. The group will be showcasing their new play Bhowesa Nkazana (You Go Girl), a highly energetic dance musical.

The production traces the development of a girl from the days when roles were designated according to gender. Through music, song, dance and drumming that traditional period is explored and presented with its rich cultural aspects while highlighting the lives of young girls during that period.

Different Ndebele, Shona, Venda and Chichewa dances are performed in order to capture the spirit of the day. The show brings out the mentoring aspect of African society where older girls guide and look after the younger ones. Through this, Intombi Zomqangala reinforce the need for positive peers who can look after each other.

Their first show, The Princess of Africa, was well received and marked the beginning of a new era in the dance arena. The group followed up with a successive play Umfazi, which was showcased in Austria, Russia and Dubai last year.

The name Intombi Zomqangala comes from a traditional Ndebele instrument called umqangala (breast calabash) which was used by young women back in the days. The young women in the group all play this instrument.

The group advocates cultural preservation at the same time empowering young women through equipping them with skills to freely express them through drama, song and dance.