Sangoma trained arts boss wants to foster spirit of Pan-Africanism

It is difficult to speak about Pan-Africanism without touching on issues of xenophobia and identity. This is the view of Keituletse “Keitu” Gwangwa‚ who has been appointed as the head of the Windybrow Arts Centre in Hillbrow‚ Johannesburg.

“It is not everybody’s go-to word and in South Africa more specifically so … We are isolated. I think it is something that we inherited. It was part of the former apartheid era. It worked to make that system function.”

Gwangwa is the daughter of legendary South African jazz musician Jonas Gwangwa and social activist Violet Gwangwa. Her appointment was announced on Monday.

Gwangwa applied for the position in August last year and got the job after an “intense” series of interviews and considers it a dream come true.

“I was extremely happy‚ extremely excited. I was numb for a bit‚” she told TimesLIVE.

She wants the Windybrow to be a “centralised space” where the meaning and ideas around Pan-Africanism can be unpacked‚ especially in South Africa.

“There is a common energy that we share as Africans that is recognised across the whole continent … That energy‚ that conversation‚ that unspoken conversation that we have as Africans‚ that is such a uniquely beautiful thing that I feel it needs to be celebrated‚” Gwangwa said.

“Essentially the foundation ingredients are that it is all a sponge cake and here we have the opportunity to taste everybody’s version of this cake.”

The Windybrow Heritage House is 121 years old. It houses a theatre and offers dance‚ drama and photography classes. The Windybrow Arts Centre was incorporated into the Market Theatre Foundation on April 1 2016.

She said one of the challenges the centre faces is to provide programmes that can attract youth despite the range of other activities that children rather want to participate in.

“They prefer paying for ballet classes or soccer or something that they feel is more mainstream.”

Keituletse has national and international experience as an artist‚ arts administrator‚ arts advocate and events manager. She has worked as an assistant director to her father and French director Sophie Loucachevsky. At arts administration organisation Cultural Helpdesk‚ she managed a Dutch/South African arts exchange website. She also worked as a producer and director with Portia Mashigo‚ winner of the 2004 Standard Bank Young Artist for Dance award‚ and choreographer Gladys Agulhas.

She also trained for three years to become a sangoma.

“I went to three different spiritual houses to specialise in different types of spiritual feeling.”

Market Theatre Foundation chief executive Ismail Mahomed said: “Keitu has the skills‚ experience‚ stamina and fortitude to lead the Windybrow Arts Centre and to build it to the same high artistic standards as the Market Theatre Foundation’s three other divisions: The Market Theatre‚ Market Theatre Laboratory and Market Photo Workshop.”

Keituletse previously led the organisations Ndebi Creations and African Zazi‚ which focused on celebrating African culture and heritage.