By Frederick Philander
WINDHOEK
Banana Shekupe’s The Journey, will be performed at the National Theatre of Namibia next week.
Shekupe says the musical is based on the true story of his childhood experiences and observations during the days of struggle in exile before, during and after independence.
The production portrays the hopes of those who fought for the emancipation of Namibia and the events that occurred during this tumultuous period of our country’s history.
“The musical seeks to portray all the emotions such as fear, anger, courage, hope and events such as rape, death, HIV/AIDS, anti-personnel mines, bombs, the armed race and slavery that were characteristic of this painful period. The primary idea is to help others understand the trauma that our people faced and the courage it requires to find hope and thus seek forgiveness, reconciliation and renewal for a new, better and safe future for the upcoming generations,” said Shekupe.
The 60-minute musical will be performed by dancers, backed by a small live orchestra/band with a fusion of traditional and modern musical instruments.
Shekupe successful choreographed musical productions that were performed locally and internationally. The productions are Circle Around Tile Moon performed in Germany 1996, Curse of the Black Fish, Expo ’98 Portugal in collaboration with NTN and HOPE a production, which was performed to much acclaim in Finland and at the NTN in Windhoek during 2005. It was done in collaboration with the City of Windhoek and the sister city of Vantaa, Finland.