All is in order at Hifa

Standard Style
The build-up to this year’s Harare International Festival of the Arts (Hifa) has been largely characterised by speculation and uncertainty, but all is in order for another memorable fete, an official has said.

The build-up to this year’s Harare International Festival of the Arts (Hifa) has been largely characterised by speculation and uncertainty, but all is in order for another memorable fete, an official has said.

By Staff Reporter

Hope Masike
Hope Masike

The festival programme is set to run from May 2 to 7 under the theme Hifa 2017-Staging an Intervention at the traditional Harare Gardens venue in Harare.

Hifa associate executive director Tafadzwa Simba said they had polished up all aspects as we enter the final week before the annual arts fiesta kicks off.

“Everything is now in place,” he said, and true to his sentiments The Standard Style witnessed progress at the venue, with stages already being set up.

Simba also said the festival-goers need not worry about current cash shortages as they had spruced up methods of plastic money usage within that vicinity.

“We have increased the number of point of sale machines, so we now have an adequate number and people will not face any hassles,” he said.

He also added that they had been overwhelmed by the positive response from different stakeholders to their call for economic assistance to make this addition a success.

According to the organisers, this year’s edition will be a mix of style and genres for theatre-lovers and festival goers, with productions from Kenya, United Kingdom and Zimbabwe combining to create an unprecedented opportunity for the Hifa audience.

A rare and new “youth zone” has also been added to the usual setup and it will be an urban jungle, a place where children of any age can explore their environment, cultural heritage and its influence on others through music, art theatre, singing and dance.