MBABANE – The challenge of securing funding remains the single biggest obstacle facing theatre producers across Southern Africa.
Mongezi Mabunda, Producer and managing director of the TX Theatre in South Africa, was speaking today while hosting a workshop during the ongoing October International Theatre Festival, on theatre administration and production at Yini Loku in Eswatini. The session explored the challenges confronting producers in South Africa and Eswatini, and how they mirror those experienced by artists in Eswatini.
According to Mabunda, while contexts may differ, the core struggle remains universal. “I think the main thing that producers struggle with is acquiring the funds, and I think that is a creative industry issue a problem that everyone faces,” he said.
Mabunda noted that although he has not spent extensive time studying the logistics of how the industry operates in Eswatini, his engagement with participants during the workshop suggested a strikingly similar reality. Artists across the border, he observed, are equally constrained by limited resources.
“Judging from the workshop, people and artists need the money to produce the works, because if there is no money it is difficult to pay an actor, it is difficult to pay a musician, it is difficult to pay someone who is going to direct the piece,” he explained.
He argued that without financial backing, the entire creative chain collapses. Productions stall, talent goes unpaid, and artistic visions remain unrealised.
For Mabunda, the key takeaway from the engagement was the shared understanding that funding is not a luxury but a necessity the foundation upon which sustainable theatre is built. “We all need the money to produce the work and once we have got the money it becomes easier to produce the work, and not just the specific work we want at the time but also for future works,” he said.
He emphasised that once funding is secured, everything else begins to fall into place. Performances can be staged, events hosted, projects executed and festivals organised with greater confidence and continuity.
Mabunda’s sentiments echo a long-standing concern within the creative economy, where many practitioners continue to produce exceptional work despite chronic underfunding.
As conversations around arts investment continue, his message was clear, if the region is to see its theatre industry thrive, financial support must be treated not as an afterthought, but as the starting point.
The OTF is not only hosting the production masterclass but has also hosted an acting masterclass at the Theatre club, proudly sponsored by Genesis Ekucaleni Media.
