WITCHES--Part 1

This drama was one of seven chosen by a drama team in Lubumbashi to be woven together into a stage play. I have a recording of it. It was performed in several churches for youth groups. The play of the first four chosen were enjoyed, but the team was told it was too short. So they requested more. I suggested three that dealt with witchcraft. They took them and used them.

The whole project of seeing these plays on stage as opposed to just hearing them was fascinating for me. But when the topic of witchcraft was dealt with, it was a whole different dynamic. I didn’t know which was more fascinating to watch—the actors or the audience. I was tempted to interrupt and tell the audience to breathe!

It was totally real to these African young people. Witches are believed in and feared. Sometimes they are killed, if it is believed that they have succeeded in harming people. Usually it is the weak and vulnerable who are suspected. I know this is completely illogical to Westerners. If witches have power, why are the suspects not powerful.

Actually, the powerful and wealthy are also suspected of using witchcraft to gain wealth. It is never assumed that their hard work was what made them rich. Witchcraft is known to be used in business, politics, sports, religion and daily life to promote oneself. The fear comes in when it is used to harm or kill others in order to get ahead.

In village life it can be dangerous to be accused of being a witch. If a serious problem shows up, (as in an epidemic or natural disaster) the accused witch is assumed guilty of causing it. The witches are usually killed. That is why in this drama father takes the accusation against the grandparents seriously and acts quickly. We'll see in the next drama if he is successful in protecting his in-laws.