Sistaz Open Mic, the popular monthly platform for emerging women artists, celebrates its third year of unabated energy and exciting artistic collaborations at The Book Café on Saturday 16 January, with a dazzling line-up expected to converge on the open mic from 2-5pm.  In the three years of its existence, the event has been a launching pad to greater things for many artists.

Left: Tariro Ruzvidzo and Cathy Mhlanga- Juvination

The January event will feature established women artists who have supported the programme from the start, including Dudu Manhenga, Rute Mbangwa and Patience Musa; and those who have appeared and grown from the platform in the 3 years since.  Others confirmed so far are rising reggae singer Thanda Richardson, Carmen Hwarari of ‘African Destiny’, and the mic is still open to feature another 20 new voices in the 3-hour programme.

2009 itself was an exciting year for Sistaz Open mic, which saw many women musicians and poets stepping up from the humble open mic platform to greater achievements.  The March “Nguva Yedu / Thuba Lethu / Our Time” Youth Festival included 6 women music artists and 4 poets; HIFA 2009 featured many from the Sistaz Open Mic platform in May, and Hope Masike performed in Europe for the Ubuntu Festival with Theresa Muteta in July. 

In September, Dudu Manhenga, Batsirai Chigama and ‘Xapa’ Mathazia performed at the huge Johannesburg ‘Arts Alive’ Festival, and Cathy Mhlanga and Tariro Ruzvidzo established themselves as the guitar/vocal duo ‘Juvination’.  Edith Katiji & ‘So What?’ collaborated with the livewire singer/songwriter Kessia Magosha for the International Images Film Festival in November, and Thanda Richardson performed twice in Denmark during the year.  Also in November, Rina Mushonga launched her debut CD with ‘The Zimfellas’, and Dudu Manhenga released her third outstanding double CD and DVD ‘Towards Alignment’. 

Three workshops ‘For Women Artists by Women Artists’ were held by the mother project FLAME, to assist emerging women artists into the professional field.  FLAME, the Pamberi Trust ‘Female Literary, Arts & Music Enterprise’, started in 2006 giving birth to Sistaz Open Mic in 2007.  Sistaz Open Mic became a popular come-hang-out-feel-good-and-forget-your-strife kind of space, created to encourage the participation of women in the arts, in the safety of daytime.  Around 25 women participate in the open mic, creating a diverse programme each month, which has maintained a strong momentum in the last three years with something fresh and new each time.

All this and more continues into 2010 and a whole lot of new and exciting synergies are expected, starting off with a big bang this January.  There is a friendly cover charge of US$0.50, and a warm invitation to relax and ‘chill out’ for the enjoyment of a great line-up. 

Performers should register with Tatenda Mabika at The Book Café before the show starts at 2pm.

- Batsirai E. Chigama

Comments

Add New Search

Write comment

Name: Email:  do not notifynotify Website: Title:     Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

3.26 Copyright (C) 2008 Compojoom.com / Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."