Kiki Katese on gender prejudice: ‘Good things are not allowed for women’
Battling ingrained prejudice and fighting for their rights in Rwanda are just some of the barriers that the women of drumming ensemble Ingoma Nshya have had to overcome. Founder Kiki Katese tells Isy Santini why she hopes audiences will embrace their show and its message of equality
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Over two decades ago, actor, playwright, director and cultural entrepreneur Kiki Katese had a mission: to empower women in Rwanda through the arts. But in an environment where a woman’s creative life was undervalued and overlooked, funding was impossible to find. Then, suddenly, her eyes settled on some drums. ‘The moment we touched the drum, something happened,’ says Katese, whose all-female drumming ensemble Ingoma Nshya are bringing their musical talents to Edinburgh with Ingoma!: A Revolution In Rhythm. ‘I like to say that it was destiny,’ she suggests.
The show takes the form of a narrative concert, weaving together music, dance and song from across Africa. ‘It’s a story of women inscribing themselves in a space that was not made for them and finding incredible joy,’ explains Katese. ‘It’s a journey of 22 years of failures, of arguments and of overcoming.’ And Ingoma Nshya certainly had much to overcome. Having been raised in exile in the DRC, Katese did not expect the backlash she received. ‘I didn’t know much about my own culture. People started saying that it’s a taboo. You know, good things are not allowed for women.’
Outside disapproval certainly wasn’t going to stop the women of Ingoma Nshya. Using their remote location as a shield, they honed their craft and grew the project, creating their own festivals and teaching drumming to young girls in local schools. Now, they teach over 500 girls across ten schools and perform internationally. ‘We are not necessarily considered cultural actors,’ adds Katese. ‘You will never see us in those meetings; we don’t have a platform where we can voice our concern.’ She pauses, then says: ‘We created our own.’
After years of perseverance, Katese now believes she is in a position to begin pushing for real change. She hopes that policymakers in Rwanda will provide funding and introduce quotas to increase the number of women in the arts, as well as integrating Ingoma Nshya’s drumming programme into school curriculums across the country.
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As she champions women’s rights back home, Katese is eager to take Ingoma Nshya’s story of empowerment across the world. ‘As an African female artist, it’s very, very difficult to access global platforms and to share our stories, and I am really thankful to the festival that they have room for that.’ Katese has no doubt that the themes of Ingoma!: A Revolution In Rhythm will resonate with audiences everywhere. ‘I hope that people will leave the show with the feeling that equality is not something to fear. When we embrace it, it only makes people stronger and somehow things get easier because we share the same opportunities, the same responsibilities.’
Ingoma!: A Revolution In Rhythm, Lyceum Theatre, 14 & 15 August, 7.30pm; 15 & 16 August, 2.30pm.