KIVU THEATRE FESTIVAL / DR CONGO

The aim of the Kivu Theatre Festival is to draw people together through art. A diverse mix of artists from the DR Congo, Rwanda and Burundi have united to organise the Kivu Theatre Festival with the aim of supporting and promoting:

• the freedom of the arts
• the freedom of speech
• the peaceful resolution of conflicts

The DR Congo, Rwanda and Burundi have, since the colonial era, shared a long history of terrible violence and war, and sadly these damaging conflicts, which first and foremost affect the civilian populations, continue to this day. Due to the violence, the local arts have suffered greatly. Many artists have been displaced, or conscripted and forced into war. Social and artistic engagement between people from different social groups has for many years been forbidden.
(For more information go to: https://sikilikafrika-rdc.jimdosite.com)

The festival aims to confront the region’s cultural and societal struggles. The artists participating in the festival all share a vision: one of “togetherness”. Their wish is to challenge the prejudices that can make it difficult for artists to network and collaborate in a positive spirit of partnership and cultural entrepreneurship.

The festival also strongly emphasises working with the children and young people from the fringes of society — the former child soldiers, children living rough on the streets or those who have been infected with HIV. These young people are encouraged to participate in the festival and to tell their own stories, and for this to be a platform to continue writing them.

“Africa is much more than just a continent, more than the sum of its nations and ethnic groups, but most importantly, it is more than the image that the Western world has of Africa”, says Yves Ndagano, director of the Kivu Theatre Festival. Together, we stand up for erasing stereotypes with the help of the universal language of art. We share a vision of “togetherness”. We want to bring together former child soldiers and the local community, people from the DR Congo, from Burundi and Ruanda, but also people from the region and people from Europe.

The money will be used to pay the artists and the workshop-leaders, their travel expenses, to advertise the festival, to buy much-needed technical equipment and to take care of the children who will be participating in the workshops.