THE scarcity of local reading materials, be it novels, poems and plays in Zambia is noticeably a sickening issue.
This is why when the Patriotic Front Government re-introduced the new school curriculum and the teaching in familiar local languages in the early grades I jumped up in applause as this will hugely enable children in similarly early grades to know how to read.
Though the subject has become emotive, understandably teaching and learning of vowels is the right thing, and indeed those of us involved in literary works and writing, are excited and pleased to realise that our writings will at least find a reader.
The assertion of hiding information in books to an African should emphatically be aborted; a thing of the past!
Surely for me, the most unfortunate part throughout my writings is failure to get feedback on what I write; I am made to simply believe nobody else has read my subject!
This is why, I am grateful and thankful to all my regular readers and others, particularly those that call and write to make their point. Keep it up.
So, the publication of ‘The Family Question and Other Plays’ by Dickson Mwansa is welcome as keen and avid readers will find something to read and add onto their book shelves.
However, before I delve into Professor Dickson Mwansa’s book, I am cognizant of the fact that in Zambia, plays are roundly unpopular both in school and the community – drama has always gone begging with theatre houses along the line of rail literary struggling to attain and sustain full houses (audiences) during theatrical performances.
We really need to belabour harder on this issue and schools, colleges and universities should intensify popularis ing drama and theatre so that this can then pass on to the rest of the community.
In developed countries, drama is a vital recreation through which history is conserved; culture, entertainment and education are provided.
‘The Family Question and Other Plays’ is a great additional injection to try and popular the drama-culture in Zambia.
The last time we had a book of Zambian plays is way back in the early eighties, nothing has been published ever since and that book is nowhere as there has been no revision and reprinting.
Professor Mwansa is a good playwright and has been associated with Zambian theatre for many years.
He is former chairperson for the Zambia National Theatre Arts Association (ZANTAA) from 1982-86, secretary general of the International Theatre Institute (1983-86), first secretary general of the National Theatre Arts Association of Zambia (NATAAZ) from 1986-88 and was a recipient of the Chairman’s Award during the 2000 Ngoma Awards for Outstanding contribution to the development of performing arts in Zambia, and is a life member at Lusaka Theatre Club for which he wrote most of the plays.
He is the author of Zambian Theatre from Traditional Arts to Movements for Cultural Expression and three other books on education.
‘The Family Question and other Plays’ is a collection of eight life-changing plays published by xlibris Publishing Company a partner of Penguin Books; the plays are The Cell, The Family Question, The Headmaster and the Rascals, Father Kalo  and the Virus, Builder and Destroyers, Save the Villa, Three Burdens and the Colourless Woman and For the Love of Boya.
The eight plays represent classical works in Zambian theatre written between 1973 and 1999 and some of them have been prize winners.
The Cell was the best play for the 1979 ZANTAA festival and received special mention in the Theatre Association of Zambia (TAZ) festival of the same year.
First Republican President Dr Kenneth Kaunda watched ‘The Cell’ in 1979 and described it as an eye opener.
When again he watched ‘The Family Question’ in 1989, he made a big donation that refurbished the Lusaka Theatre Club and gave a job to Wesley Kaonga, who was the main actor because of the impact the play had on him and the other leaders who accompanied him.
The Cell portrays characteristics of a prison and society humorlessly juxtaposed as Nkrumah observed no man or woman is born a criminal but society moulds such characters.
The play has been reviewed in books and journals, while The Family Question was the best play for the NATAAZ festival in 1989 and was performed in Detroit, USA, subsequently published by Bedford publishers in Chicago USA in 1991 as one of the best plays by Africans.
The Family Question deals with experiences of returnees from the diaspora through whose eyes the blues and joys of a country in transition to higher level of development is judged as well as the alienation of the returnees’ experiences.
The Headmaster and the Rascals was the best play for the NATAAZ festival in 1999 and was employed by the Ministry of Education to show challenges school administrators faced in dealing with discipline, governance and financial management. It toured schools on the Copperbelt and Lusaka provinces.
Father Kalo and the Virus was a campaign play that entertained and spurred many people for behavioural change in its multi-faceted tackling of the complexity of the disease of HIV and AIDS as well as tensions raised between modern and traditional medicine in the quest for a cure.
Sponsored by the John Hopkins School of Medicine in the USA and the Ministry of Health in Zambia, the play toured the whole country.
In Builders and Destroyers, the playwright explores the divisive nature of ethnicity whose stronghold is defeated by the love between two young people whose love rises above prejudice.
Save the Villa is about crime in a country where poverty and affluence lie side by side.
It is a hilarious drama, while in The Three Burdens and the Colourless Woman Prof Mwansa raises the triumph in an interracial love relationship exposing jealousy, envy and race.
Prof Mwansa told me a week ago that the book appears on the London Book Fair from 6th to 10 April in London and is available for sale on the website xlibrispublishing.co.uk/bookstore, Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and bookstores in Zambia and omore than 2400 bookstores around the world.
Some copies can be bought directly from the playwright, and said copies bought from Prof Mwansa will be autographed with 10 per cent discount on the set world prices of K140 for paper back and K240 for the hard cover.
Instead one would buy at K126 and K216 for the paper back and hard cover, respectively.
“For those buying from me, I will additionally invite you to a book launch or some other book event lined up to bring the book to the attention of our nation,” Prof Mwansa said, adding that every copy of the book one buys directly from him will make it possible for him to achieve the following things: enable him build more classrooms  at The Kabanana Centre for Open and Distance Learning which he says is part of his last dream of bringing education to many people, and that selling over 5000 copies will lead to an international award of a bestseller position and likely to contribute to the recognition of Zambian literature.
Prof Mwansa said the sale of the book will further enable him to produce the second volume of the remaining eight other plays.
He further said for the personalised order, one can pay into the following account: Professor Dickson M. Mwansa; Account: 0150110985400 at Standard Chartered Bank, Lusaka Main Branch, Sort code: SCBLZMLX.
Upon payment,  the deposit slip should be emailed to elastus@gmail.com,  chama.mwansa@gmail.com or take the deposit slip when collecting the book at Senate Block, Zambian Open University, Lusaka West or one can call the following numbers +260977850409 and or +260955365590 for registration to participate in one of the forth coming book events and or send comments on the book after reading  to: dicksonmwansa@yahoo.co.uk.
Prof Mwansa ended by saying, “ My appreciations are to various colleagues who produced, directed, acted and watched some of the plays.”
Next week, my itinerary is to look at the forthcoming Mwansabombwe Theatre and the Copperbelt Provincial School Arts Association of Zambia festivals; though tricky I am thirsting to attend both events which begin on April 18 and end on 21.
The Mwansabombwe festival takes place at Mable Shaw, while Kalulushi Secondary School hosts the school drama festival.
john.kapesa818@yahoo.co.uk – 0955-067-0977-710975