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Tafadzwa Zimoyo : Arts Reporter

Zimbabwe’s first ever 24-hour theatre challenge caused a buzz among artistes and the audience alike at the Harare International Festival of the Arts in 2012. Four years later, the challenge returns, but in a different and yet equally exciting format. According to Stanley Makuwe, the creator of the theatrical piece, the challenge scouts for talented Zimbabwean writers to give the audience the best “Six Laughs”.“The laugh comes under the theme: Hope.

From all the scripts submitted, we will come up with a shortlist, and from that shortlist we will choose the best six.

This simply means writing a 10-minute play containing a “laugh” anywhere in the script.

Writers of the best six will be asked to collaborate to come up with an hour long play to be staged sometime in 2017.

The rules are that: the script must be 10 minutes long (approximately 10 pages), there should be a short synopsis of no more than 50 words and a brief about the scriptwriter in five lines.

“The script must contain no more than two characters and the play must be in English and must be the original work of the writer.

Would-be contestants should put their names on the title page, and it must not appear anywhere else on the script.

The title of the play must be written at the top of every page and closing date is October 16, 2016.

All writers must be Zimbabwean, no matter where they are in the world and they should state where they are writing from.

The shortlisted writers will be informed by email by December 31, 2016 while winners will be announced by January 31, 2017.

The best script will be crowned the 2017 Six Laughs Winner. And this comes with the top prize.

Two runners up will also win prizes while the final six writers will receive certificates.

Makuwe said the scriptwriters should grab the audience from the start

and write about something they know best.

“A great script contains at least the following: protagonist, antagonist, inciting incident, conflict, action, climax and resolution,” he said.

Makuwe, is a Zimbabwean writer based in New Zealand. In 2012 he brought the 24-hour theatre challenge to Hifa, drawing a full house at Reps theatre.

He has won Outstanding Production and Outstanding Director at the National Arts Merit Awards 2016. He has also been nominated for the Adam New Zealand playwriting, and the BBC International Playwriting Awards.