THIS IS THE GENESIS by Mapeacocks



World Congress at Cape Town City Hall

As he set for Cape Town on Tuesday 16^th of May, Malawian youth will anticipate more from his trip as he will explore more from 19^th Assitej Conference which is taking place in Cape Town South Africa. ASSITEJ SA invited Fumban Innot Phiri from Malawi under Solomonic Peacocks Theatre to participate in the Next Generation Residency Programme at the 19th ASSITEJ World Congress and Performing Arts Festival, Cradle of Creativity, in Cape Town in May 2017.

The Next Generation, Phiri in the middle down.

ASSITEJ is the international association of theatre for children and young people, and operates in more than 100 countries. ASSITEJ is committed to engaging young and emerging artists and professional theatre-makers from all over the world interested in Theatre for Young Audiences. The ASSITEJ Next Generation Residency Programme is designed to create new opportunities for learning and to enable international exchange and collaboration between younger artists. Artists in the residency will be able to view productions, take workshops, participate in discussions and attend a variety of Focus Day sessions related to different themes within Theatre for Young Audiences.

“Talking of theatre for young people this is the beginning and a good way to start is by export as talented youth to be exposed across the world of theatre” Solomonic Executive director explains. Now the question is who is Fumban Innot Phiri jnr. In the Malawian theatre books.

Fumban Innot Phiri is an Actor and a Script Writer at Solomonic Peacocks Theatre and currently being trained as a theatre director under Solomonic peacocks’ theatre class and studying Journalism at the University of Malawi-The Polytechnic. Off stage Innot has worked widely in theatre super vision and is the Festival Coordinator of National School Youth Arts Festival and a Part Time director of theatre in several high/secondary schools.

Fumban is also a poet and has compose about 15 poems, His motivation is to help install the creative arts in Malawi as tool of development. On the stage Fumban has worked as both actor, playwright and director. He has performed about 10 majors’ plays and write approximately 30 productions to date.In 2015 he shakes the stage of Blantyre Culture Centre during Blantyre Arts Festival with a play titled “The Marauding Beast” despite being the main actor in the play he was also behind paper and pen of the script.

Fumban During African Playwrights Presentation

Now let’s forget about his background and more talk on what he will bring from Assitej. Today is on his 7^th day at Cape Town.

“Days are few but a lot has been taking place, as quickly on the opening day there was a lot before it kicks off. At the main event venue all delegates from different countries across the world converge at Arts-Cape theatre for the first show Animal Farm by Shakexperience Theatre from Johannersburg, South Africa then at 15hours we board buses to Baxter Theatre Centre which is 25 kilomtre away for the opening ceremony” Phiri explains…

“As being part of the next generation of this festival there is more for my country in just 7 days I went through five workshops from; Theatre For Education, Theatre for Healing, Physical Theatre and to Theatre for Social change and there is more to experience here at cape town” From what he says there is hope for Theatre in Malawi to revive.




Fun Time

Performance by kidz from Zimbabwe

Fumban will be back this Saturday on 27^th May, as from Solomonic Theatre class they are just waiting what will be in the basket from Capetown.

MEET VITU’S EXPRESSION AT SOLOMONIC by Vitumbiko Gwambaike, Edited by Innot Fumban Phiri Jnr.

I started going to Solomonic peacocks theater two years ago because of my friends Fumban and Wiseman whom l have known in around 2012 at Nyamitambo arts palace, we were doing English stage drama but let’s save more about Nyamitambo arts palace for another time. In the last two years my presence at solomonic had been on and off mainly because of school since I am now pursuing my first degree at the university of Malawi Chancellor College and am going in my final year so I usually go to solomonic during holidays



Vitu pose at Show

My journey at solomonic have been so far great mainly because of experience am getting interms of theatrical performances, sorry I forget to tell you that I am majoring in drama and minoring in philosophy hence theatre has been part of me and the experience I obtained from solomonic during holidays has been just awesome for my career as an actor, director and a script writer. In my school we learn a lot of things theoretically but we luck that punch of doing the same stuff on the ground and Solomonic has been helping me how I can implement what I have learnt in class into practical. Mr matukuta and the whole solomonic management trusted me and my colleague Dalistani Alsemo to help our friends on script writing and theater for development and I handled the latter.

Theater for development is now one of the most flourishing theater in developing countries including Malawi and a lot of organisation are using it to spread messages across the country. I studied theater for development three years ago when I was in my 2^nd year and I have been going out with different organisation like CREECOM, Arts and Global health centre Africa, Africa cooperation for community development and other as a TFD troop member and a facilitator. As a facilitator I usually meet with drama club members in different areas and most of the club members I have worked with are primary school dropout but this was not the case with solomonic were the majority of the members have secondary certificate and are now pursuing diplomas and degrees in different colleges.

Theatre For Development by Mapeacoks Theatre Class

When Mr Matukuta approach me to help my colleagues on TFD my body filled with fear for unknown reasons but my main worry was that the people whom am about to take my lesson to are my friends, moreover to teacher someone (Fumbani) who introduced me into acting and he is quite experience script writing of which to I have to went the corridors of university of Malawi in order to be a script writer. So the question I was having in my mind was “are they going to listen to me and take me serious?” the other worry was that almost all the members were my age mates and you know how we youth underage each other regardless of the message. So I went home and prepare for my lesson and the next time I come it was boom!! I killed it all the fears went abroad and there I was in front of the whole members’ transferring my knowledge of the TFD to people who only about less than 20% knew about TFD as show during the pre evaluation. I must admit here I enjoyed my lesson because the participants were very active, people who were eager to know and I remember they could shower me with questions so that they should really understand the whole concepts of TFD and I really enjoyed it.  

I didn’t have really time to fixture in their plays but I can testify here that the time I was there doing there practise for plays like Romeo and Juliet, A children play for St Patrick’s, the sensitization play on HIV testing and treatment were all moments to be cherished because I learnt a lot as a theatre practitioner and as an individual since I encountered with different people with different back ground. Lastly I want to thank the management and the whole Solomonic team for the great time I have with them, I can’t wait for another holiday to come here again.