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| Entertainment |
| Mzuzu reacts to ‘Breaking the Pot |
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by
Edward Nyirenda, 12 June 2006
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06:56:52
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As the lights on the stage faded and the curtain fell, there was nothing more Mzuzu people could do than give Breaking the Pot a standing ovation.
Theatre gurus, Nanzikambe, had showcased for the first time the moral laced tragicomedy at Mzuzu University and Katoto Secondary schools in the Northern capital.
There were moments when the audience roared with laughter as the play humorously explored the funny but intricate issues affecting family life in our society.
There was also eerie quietness, with the audience lost in deep thought, as the play took the audience on a journey of how local women have been yoked to oppressive life.
“The play is very good and it addresses some cultural issues that need to be aired. Hopefully, it opens people’s eyes to the roles men and women should play in marriage,” commented Mary Phiri from Chibanja Township in the city.
Another male patron from Chibabvi concurred: “Everything was just good; the play is great, the actors and even the stage setting is superb. It tells you Nanzikambe is in a class of its own.”
The play which talks about the painful experiences women go through such as the subordinate status to their husbands and limited access to valuable resources such as land, technology and formal employment, came to a perfect place.
The North has for a long time been famed for its oppressive culture towards women through misconceptions about bride price called ‘lobola’. The practice has been hugely blamed for precipitating gender-based inequalities which make life for women strenuous and painful.
“I wish all men were here to watch this far-reaching play. It is not only about entertainment but it explores oppression in our marriages and calls for a revolution of our traditional beliefs about love,” said a father of two, Macdonald Gondwe, who had brought his family to sample the play.
While his wife reserved her comment, Gondwe added: “The problem with our generation is that we are preconditioned to think in a certain way. We tend to think that women are supposed to be under our armpits. But the play is teaching us that it is high time we changed.”
The play suggests that people should be allowed to express their freedom. It looks at the family of Mr and Mrs. Jere which appears to be a happy one. But Nora (the wife) played by Mbumba Mbewe, has a secret to keep.
Early in their marriage, she takes a dubious course of action to obtain the means necessary to save her ill husband’s life. This, she considers, to be a great statement of her love for him.
But when the secret comes out, Jere, played by Mafumu Matiki, reacts with rage and revulsion refusing to see that Nora acted out of love for him, and without any sign of willingness to accept responsibility for her actions.
Such an action makes Nora realise that her marriage, her love and her duties in life are not what she thought they were. She decides that her most important and only task is to go out in to the world on her own and to “bring herself up”.
Nevertheless, Mzuzu University Assistant Registrar Chiyamiko Chimkwita Phiri, herself a gender activist, says even though the play is very beautiful, its theme is not clear. She says the play ends abruptly thereby lacking a smooth transition to make it sound real.
“To somebody who doesn’t understand why treating a wife like that is bad, it doesn’t make sense. It feels like the wife is ungrateful because you see, the man did everything for her and suddenly, the woman says you don’t treat me well. There was need for a smooth transition,” she says.
She adds that the play as performed in Mzuzu does not ably articulate why Nora has kept the secret that wrecked her marriage and life from her husband. According to her, it is hard to know what the play is advocating: whether it is economic independence of a woman or rights to say one’s opinions.
“At least, the play should have shown why Nora is unable to disclose the secret to her husband,” said Chimkwita adding: “The theme is not clear even though it’s about empowering women. To an activist like me, I would understand what is going on but to somebody who doesn’t appreciate the idea of empowering women, it is not clear.”
Breaking the pot was produced collaboratively by Thoko Kapiri and Mellissa Eveleigh of Nanzikambe, and a Norwegian national Karl Hoff. It was adapted from the 19th century play A Doll House by Norway’s legendary playwright Henrik Ibsen. Ibsen’s plays are famed for their themes that often deal with issues of financial difficulty, moral conflicts that come from darker private secrets that are often hidden from society.
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