22 CAS actors jostle for Banham awards

TWENTY TWO artistes at Chingola Arts Society (CAS) will this Saturday be jostling for awards in various categories for the Christopher Banham annual Awards for the best performances during 2011. The Banham awards, which are held in honour of CAS founding Chairperson Christopher Robert Banham Esquire, were inaugurated in 1989 with only four categories. The Banham award has in the recent past grown to accommodate more than 20 deserving actors competing for various awards. CAS chairperson Clement Muyasani said in an interview that the award ceremony was meant to honour and appreciate deserving actors for the outstanding roles and performances especially by members of CAS during the year. The outstanding addition to this year’s Banham awards is CAS has improved the package of the awards to motivate the actors. The Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) sponsored extravaganza ceremony which has been pegged at K50, 000 as entry charges would start at 19:30 hours with Vice President Guy Scott destined to grace the occasion. Spicing up the evening would be Baluba star band with live music performances, the seasoned Sunga Umukoshi dance troop of Kitwe, the elite Seka Tumfwe comedy of Chingola, Folk music and play excerpts by CAS. Muyasani said CAS had staged six plays in 2011 namely, Benevolent Myra popularly known as Let’s Pray Myra written by Barney Kanjela, Kill the Rats and The Crackdown by Leonard Koloko, Beyond the Horizon by Sam Kanyama of Malawi, Kokai by Raymond Kaoma and Gone with a Sugar Daddy by Light Musonda. He said actors would be vying for leading roles in both male and female category at this event where the seasoned journalist Jermaine Sikombe would be the director of the programme. Last year’s CAS and Ngoma awards winner Kate Lungu would again be in contention to grab more awards. And the talented Steve Zimba who has won more awards than any other at CAS would also be yearning to clutch more. The categories to be honoured include best overall production, best director, best producer, best lights, carmeo, best sets and best decorations, best costumes, best script, best make up and best properties. Muyasani said CAS had received overwhelming support from business houses who were aiming at promoting and raising standards of the local arts in Chingola. He said 32 companies had made the hosting of the 22nd Banham awards ceremony possible. Some of the sponsors were BCL import and Export, Protea Hotel, H&D, Atlas Copco, Hill & Delamain, Mickey’s Supermarket, Pep stores, Cavmont Bank, Zambian National Building Society, Lemmer Hydraulics, Harvest Steel, Sagitarius, DHL, Nsumi and Micus Guest houses, Others being CAS car wash, CAS Kitchen, CAS hair salon, CAS block making, Pentagon guest house, Yellow Quip, Stanbic Bank, Friends Driving School, National Breweries, Status Hi-Tech, Indo-Zambia Bank, Nchanga Member of Parliament Wylbur Simusa, Matty Investment, Frabec Engineering, Mining Haulage and Cargo Management.