The Bullet in the Pawpaw: Theatre and AIDS in South Africa, by Kim Hope

Author: Kim Hope. Review by Marian Liebmann.

In March 2003 I was on my way to Kuruman Moffat Mission in South Africa. I was going to lead some talks and workshops on art therapy, at a conference of people working in prisons. On the way I had arranged a couple of meetings in Johannesburg with conflict resolution organisations, and intended to do a bit of tourism after paying a short visit to the Themba HIV/AIDS Project at the Trevor Huddleston Memorial Centre. This is in Sophiatown, Johannesburg, and was founded by Friends Kim Hope and Theresa Lynne. I was with my husband Mike and we planned to spend about an hour there.

We ended up staying most of the day. Eight young men and women were rehearsing for a production in a school the next day and we were riveted! We ended up participating in the warm-up activities, asking questions and giving our feedback when needed.

The Interactive Themba Theatre Project was set up in 2002 by Kim and Theresa at the request of Thabo Makgoba, then an Anglican priest in Sophiatown (he is now the archbishop of Cape Town). Prior to that Kim and Theresa had run many weekend workshops for young people on dealing with conflict and violence, but the full-scale project was aimed at helping the AIDS crisis in South Africa. The pair raised money (much of it from Quakers) and advertised in townships for young people without jobs who had the potential to become actor-educators.

There were many ways in which Themba (which means ‘hope’ in Zulu) was unique. It achieved its aims of educating people about HIV and AIDS using real-life scenarios, activities from the Alternatives to Violence Project, and forum theatre techniques from Augusto Boal. It used young people from the same township backgrounds as the children they were trying to reach. The young actor-educators learned facilitation skills they could use in the project and in other jobs and courses.

Now, Kim Hope has completed an account of the project and its achievements. The book is hard to put down, as she charts the highs and lows of the project, along with the doubts and difficulties she and Theresa encountered along the way. There are several sections where Kim reflects on their place as white women in an African country still trying to find its feet.

Kim also reflects on her Quakerism and the way it helped to sustain her; it also provided connections for fundraising and other support. ‘Live adventurously’ is certainly one of the Advices she took to heart.

This story should be read by all of us. It shows how one person can act as a catalyst for a process and a project that benefits many people. To provide a small insight, she has included some of their drama games and exercises, with the adaptations for the Themba Project.

One final point: I was very curious about the title! I had to wait till two thirds of the way through the book to find out what it meant…

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