UP Drama celebrates World Food Day

Published October 21, 2022, by Jimmy Masombuka

World Food Day is an international day celebrated every year on 16 October to commemorate the founding of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation in 1945. The day is celebrated widely by many organisations whose work is [centred] around eradicating hunger and boosting food security such as the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

The DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security and School of the Arts: Drama at the University of Pretoria collaborated on a series of performance “bites” to celebrate World Food Day at the Hatfield Campus under the theme: “Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow”. The main objective was to raise awareness about the importance of healthy eating and food security. To do this, a group of second-year Applied Theatre students took part in performances on campus around the themes.

Applied Theatre uses drama and theatre-based techniques to explore social issues of concern and to stimulate critical reflection on these issues. In this way, theatre and performance become tools of social activism.

“Gastronomies consists of a series of provocations that look at the relationship between human experiences and food, and conjectures on the meanings of food in this context,” says Professor Marié-Heleen Coetzee, who lectures in Applied Theatre and Directing.

In particular, the performances engage with food consumption in relation to class and power and the importance of healthy eating. The performance “bites” were built around images drawn from the themes that were used as building blocks to structure the performances. The “bites” took place at different locations on campus, including the paved area in front of the Artisan coffee shop, the Piazza and the lawn between the JJ Theron lecture hall and Adlers/Vida E Caffe coffee shops.

Three of the “bites” were directed by Prof Coetzee and one was choreographed by Dr Kristna Johnstone. Costumes were made by Nomzamo Molaba, Cindy Nhlangwini and Nadine Minnaar from the Drama Wardrobe and Workshop. They were assisted by Ishmael Lekgoto and Keamohetse Modisadife. Nadine Minnaar, manager of the Drama workshop, led the set dressing and was assisted by Lukas Moumakwe, Obekeng letsoalo and Mabile and Lesiba Lebea. The performers were Tatenda Mutambara, Wianné Fourie, Moshe Konye, Wilco Meyer, Sarah-Jane Thomas and Claudi Esterhuizen. The performers were assisted by a technical team consisting of second-year students Dylan Botha, Nzuzo Dlamini, Tasmin Vorster, Caitlin Huntley, Isabelle Pienaar and Thato Mokoane.

It is important to consider the fact that World Food Day is not only about celebrating healthy and nutritious food that people have the privilege of indulging in. The day is also about raising awareness about people who do not have such a privilege. At UP, the Student Nutrition and Progress Programme (SNAPP), also known as the UP Feeding Scheme, supports financially needy students by giving them a meal allowance or food parcels. Professor Lise Korsten, co-director of the DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, and Dr Willeke de Bruin, senior postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, attest to the fact that World Food Day is an important reminder to recommit to plans and actions that focus on better food production, better nutrition, a better environment and better life where no one is left behind.