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The Federation of Anglophone Africans in Belgium (FAAB) is a socio-cultural organization. As such, among other things, it organizes social and cultural activities for the communities either directly or in cooperation with its member associations.
The transmission and exchange of cultural aspects in their various forms is one of the priorities of FAAB. This is why on the 8th of October 2010 at 8 pm, at the Gent intercultural centre “De Centrale”, the Theater Spelende Mens vzw and FAAB vzw co-organized and presented an acted two men reading of “The Night of The Burning Apes.” This is a theatre piece/play that was written and directed by Tone Brulin. It tells the story of First black African from the Gold Coast (now known as Ghana) to arrive in Belgium, Antwerp. It depicts his struggle, trials and tribulations in his quest for recognition and acceptance as a human being. It also tells how this young man became a piteous spectacle, an object of ridicule and curiosity among the local inhabitants. He was displayed at the Antwerp zoo among the apes as part of the attraction, but finally ended up becoming a keeper of the zoo as he quickly adapted and became a hero .I can go on and on about this intriguing young man but I’ll spare you the details.
In short, the story has a message for all of us as migrants in Diaspora, as it depicts the struggles foreigners have to undergo in foreign soils before they are finally integrated and accepted into the local circles/ society. Sometimes foreigners are viewed with suspicion, distrust and even contempt by the locals until they can prove their worth, just like the black Jefke did in the play.
The play was well attended, some of the people commented that despite the play’s complexity, as it combined facts and fiction, that it was brilliantly written and well presented. This play was worth watching on stage!
At the end of the play FAAB treated all those who had attended to a free drink on top of the 50 free entrance tickets that FAAB had subsidized to enable those who are interested in the theatre culture of art to attend
As a final note, allow me to point out that those who attended the play might have learnt something about virtues such as: perseverance, humility and tolerance. These are some of the important qualities for our diverse communities if they are to live together in peace and harmony.
The FAAB team would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who attended and advise every member and the general public to keep abreast with what is going on in FAAB and its member associations by regularly checking our website for updates and future events.
Check out photos in gallery |
