Koleka Putuma

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Koleka Putuma (born March 22, 1993 in Port Elizabeth ) is a South African writer , theater director and spoken word artist .

Life

Putuma grew up as the daughter of a pastor. According to her own account, her interest in writing poetry began in 9th grade when she was writing a rap about HIV / AIDS awareness in class. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theater & Performance from the University of Cape Town . In 2014, while still a student, she was the country's first National Slam Champion . In the same year she performed her play Uhm (something like "Uh"), which is about the influence of the English language in South Africa.

She writes poetry and has emerged as a playwright , director - in 2015 she staged several plays at the Magnet Theater - and spoken word artist. Among other things, she wrote plays for toddlers and babies.

The book Collecive amnesia was described on Deutschlandfunk as the "Poetics of Decolonization". Her topics include the complex effects of apartheid on South African society. Putuma is a lesbian - but she not only criticizes the conservative, homophobic Christianity that her father embodies, but also the “protest marches under the rainbow banner ”, which are “a new kind of paranoia / a new way of hiding”. Putuma has performed in the United States, Great Britain, Germany and Switzerland, among others. She also recites her poems in videos and performances, for example during a train ride.

Putuma lives in Cape Town .

Awards

  • 2014: Standard Bank Ovation Award at the National Arts Festival for Uhm
  • 2016: PEN South Africa Student Writing Prize for Water
  • 2017: City Press Book of the Year for Collective amnesia
  • 2018: Listed on Forbes' “30 Most Promising African Creatives”

Works

  • 2014: Uhm. Drama.
  • 2016: Woza Sarafina! Drama.
  • 2017: Collective amnesia. Poems. uHlanga.
  • 2017/2018: Mbuzeni. Drama.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d The universe and poet Koleka Putuma are in negotiations. Mail & Guardian of March 2, 2015 (English), accessed February 21, 2020
  2. ↑ a b Q&A with PEN SA Student Prize-Winner Koleka Putuma. pensouthafrica.co.za from June 15, 2016, accessed February 20, 2020
  3. ^ Sieglinde Geisel: A Poetics of Decolonization. deutschlandfunkkultur.de from January 24, 2020
  4. ↑ a b Angela Schrader: Koleko Putuma, poetry star from South Africa. nzz.ch from February 18, 2020, accessed on February 20, 2020
  5. ↑ Koleko Putuma. magnettheatre.co.za, accessed February 22, 2020
  6. ↑ Koleka Putuma: Collective Amnesia by Koleka Putuma. youtube.com (video) from July 28, 2016
personal data
SURNAME Putuma, Koleka
BRIEF DESCRIPTION South African writer, theater director and spoken word artist
DATE OF BIRTH March 22, 1993
PLACE OF BIRTH Port Elizabeth