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Performing Arts & Film celebrates the Golden Jubilee

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The International Conference on Performing Arts and the Department of Performing Arts Golden jubilee celebrations have officially been opened at Makerere University. The celebrations organised under the theme, Performing Arts and the University of the 21st Century: Concepts, Training and Practice was organised and hosted by Makerere University Department of Performing Arts and Film in partnership with the International Drama/ Theatre and Education Association (IDEA) and Rostock University of Music and Theatre in Rostock Germany.

The one-week event (27th March -1st April 2023) attracted over 400 participants from within Uganda and beyond Africa including Europe, USA, Latin America, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Asia. The participants comprised teachers, researchers, practitioners and other experts and students in disciplines in performing arts presenting, debating and workshopping knowledge and practice.

This platform created space for faculty   to hear and share voices, experiences and dreams and commitments around the world in respect of the field of Theatre and performers, while students were able to interact and learn through paper, panel, key note presentations and get exposure.

Opening the conference on behalf of the university Management,  the Dean School of Performing arts Associate Professor Patrick Mangeni explained that the celebration was in recognition of the contribution  that the department has made to the field of culture and performance in the last 50 years.

Prof. Patrick Mangeni making his remarks during the opening ceremony.
Prof. Patrick Mangeni making his remarks during the opening ceremony.

The department started its journey under the department of Literature before it became the Department of Music, Dance and Drama and now the Department of Performing Arts and Film. One of the objectives was to develop the human capacity to contribute to education and development through the arts and the area of arts.

Looking back and counting the fruits of the department’s engagements and production, Prof. Mangeni enumerated a number of key milestones worth celebrating.

Among them includes legends like the Late prof. Rose Mbowa, Prof. Sserwadda’s contribution to dance, Zadok Adolu, Prof. George William Kakoma, Prof. Katana, Prof. Tamusuza who were initially students but also came to serve in the department and contributed to expanding the musical score of Uganda.

Members of the department he said have contributed immensely, for example Prof. George William Kakoma who was also head of department and composed the Uganda National anthem, Rose Mbowa wrote the lyrics for the women’s anthem and the music sung by Prof. R Tamusuza. Others are Prof. Grace Wilson Mutekanga Igaga who composed the current Makerere University Anthem.

“Through Uganda’s history particularity when the department had started, we have made a contribution in terms of sensitisation of communities, and in terms of trying to enforce and enhance unity and collaboration which is key for the development of this country.

The department has also gone in the area of health where it played a significant role in awareness creation and sensitisation around HIV/AIDS but also using theatre as a frame to foster society through particular films”, Mangeni said

In addition, the department has contributed the manpower outside Makerere University that continues to make significant contribution. For example, in scene of Theatre and Comedy, people who started and popularised comedy like Philip Luswata were nurtured by the department, formed the first comedy group and others have moved on and the scene is significantly different and improved.

The department has also added to the human resource management and leadership running the university where members have key roles in different units. Prof. Mangeni has served for seven years as chair ceremonies committee, one of the longest serving chairs and Prof. Nakimera Tamusuza now heading the Grants Administration and Management Unit.

The department has also been critical in the entertainment and cultural life in the university during graduations and all occasions with students active in areas of theatre and development.

“We have a lot to celebrate and above all to acknowledge the university for what it has made us and also to point out clearly what we have contributed to this country and to posture to the future”, Prof. Mangeni added.

The Head Department of Performing Arts and Film, Dr. Benon Kigozi said the conference is part of the events lined up for the commemoration of the 50 years of the Department of Performing Arts and Film.

Dr. Benon Kigozi making his remarks.
Dr. Benon Kigozi making his remarks.

Dr. Kigozi explained that the conference resonates very well with the IDEA conference held bi-annually in different countries and that is why they we thought of partnering since it was coming to Uganda.

The conference is about research, performance, academics presenting papers coming out of research but we are celebrating 50 years of existence as a department

We want to bring the community into the classroom, see where we can mitigate the challenges, where we are going and what we can put across to other people that are coming up, what has gone wrong, what we ca can correct and good practices are we going to take on board”. Dr. Kigozi explained.

As a department, Kigozi noted, they have come a long way to become vibrant at Makerere University running up to about 12 programmes, from diploma, bachelor of Arts, music, dance and drama then Master of Arts in Performing Arts and also have a doctorate of performing arts.

“We take centre stage in the events of the university to do outreach and entertain, to showcase Makerere and get young ones get on stage before they leave Makerere. Theses alludes to the fact that we are relevant, doing what we must be doing and we are in the right direction”, The head said and demystified the thinking that performing arts has no future.

“There is a lot of future in performing arts. There are so many career benefits and career opportunities that you can take on as a performing artist depending on depending on area you choose. You can choose to be drama, music, theatre, be dance and do film as well.

About 20years ago, most of the things we used to see on TV were foreign but now about 90% of what you see on television is locally made and those students are trained here in this country. The arts are very strong and there so many things we can do as performing artists in terms of changing society , lobbying an in terms of sensitising people on various aspects of life”. He added.

IDEA president Sanja Krsmanovic Tasic said IDEA was last on the African continent in 1998 at the Kisumu congress in Kenya.

IDEA President Sanja Krsmanovic Tasic addressing participants.
IDEA President Sanja Krsmanovic Tasic addressing participants.

After 25 years, she observed people live in completely different world with technological experience expressing happiness that people from all round the world sitting in offices, living rooms, kitchens and watching the conference at Makerere.

“We cannot even know what profession our children will be having and the work they will be doing.So the research that need to be conducted is to prove how much performing arts trains young individuals for the jobs for the new century before us.

We know that drama in teacher education is a very important tool for developing creativity, problem solving for the wellbeing of people especially in post COVID era”, she asserted.

She described the moment as an exciting one following IDEA Congress that was hosted in Island last year, a planned Arts Education summit in Portugal and now at Makerere and next the next IDEA congress meeting scheduled to take place in Beijing China

This proves how IDEA is a world-wide inclusive association that spreads the goodness of drama theatre education. It is not about preaching to the congress, it is Abou finding out who we and how important the field is”, Sanja stressed.

She implored participants to think of how they can change the world as individuals as long as they are alive. In such a meeting she said, there are three most important things to achieve.

One key thing is to listen to each other and find about each other’s work. The second level is to watch each other’s work, (is it a presentation, a performance, a video) but the third level is to work together and encounter each other in creative work.

The conference papers and workshops addressed topics on different themes including Theories and Aesthetics, Text and Performance, Practice and Context, Interculturality and Globalisation and Performing arts and university education.

Other themes were Institutionalisation, Curriculum and Scholarship, Publishing the Performing Arts, Knowledge Production and Reproducibility, Performing Artist for Tomorrow and Digitalisation and New Media.

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Jane Anyango

General

Diploma in Performing Arts Admission List 2025/26

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The Office of Academic Registrar, Makerere University has released the admission list of candidates who passed the special entry examinations for the Diploma in Performing Arts held on Saturday 17th May, 2025

The following have been admitted by the University’s Admissions Committee on Private Sponsorship for the 2025/26 Academic Year

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Special Exam Results -Diploma in Performing Arts 2025/26

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The results for the 2025/2026 special entry examination for the Diploma in Performing Arts held on Saturday 17th May, 2025. Candidates who scored a final mark of 50% and above passed the Examination and have been recommended to the university’s Admissions Committee for consideration.

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Humanities & Social Sciences

CHUSS Graduate Symposium Showcases Research and Fosters Collaboration

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Some of the PhD Students in the audience. College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) 2025 Graduate Symposium, Day 2, 20th June 2025, Main Hall, Main Building, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

By Atwenda Nancy. E

Makerere University, June 20, 2025 — The College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) is holding its 2025 Graduate Symposium from June 19 – 21, 2025, bringing together scholars, mentors, and graduate students in a spirited exchange of ideas, research, and academic collaboration.

The symposium, hosted at Makerere University, has provided a dynamic platform for PhD students to present their ongoing research, while also strengthening ties with sister universities and celebrating the achievements of the CHUSS Graduate School in nurturing the next generation of scholars.

Dr. Edgar Fred Nabutanyi delivers the keynoted address. College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) 2025 Graduate Symposium, Day 2, 20th June 2025, Main Hall, Main Building, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.
Dr. Edgar Fred Nabutanyi delivers the keynoted address.

In his keynote address, Dr. Edgar Fred Nabutanyi welcomed participants and acknowledged the contributions of speakers from the previous day’s sessions, including Prof. Eric Awich Ochen (Deputy Principal, CHUSS), Dr. Peter Wekesa, and Dr. Zaid Sekito, among others. He emphasized that the symposium was not just a showcase of academic work, but a strategic platform to build partnerships and attract research funding.

“Generations must prepare for the next generation,” Dr. Nabutanyi noted, reflecting on life after PhD and the evolving role of Makerere University as a research-intensive institution. He praised department heads for their role in ensuring timely completion of graduate programmes and reiterated the college’s commitment to research excellence.

Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi delivers the Vice Chancellor's remarks. College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) 2025 Graduate Symposium, Day 2, 20th June 2025, Main Hall, Main Building, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.
Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi delivers the Vice Chancellor’s remarks.

The event was officially opened by Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi, the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, who represented the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe. In his remarks, Prof. Buyinza highlighted the importance of research that is impactful and relevant to society.

“Research is unimportant unless it is relevant,” he stated. “If one conducts research that doesn’t benefit society, it becomes a waste of resources.” He urged graduate students to approach their academic work with purpose, noting that Makerere is not a “PhD factory” but a hub for innovation, with over 300 active PhD students registered.

Prof. Helen Nambalirwa Nkabala addresses the symposium. College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) 2025 Graduate Symposium, Day 2, 20th June 2025, Main Hall, Main Building, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.
Prof. Helen Nambalirwa Nkabala addresses the symposium.

Prof. Helen Nambalirwa Nkabala, Principal of CHUSS, underscored the College’s intentional approach to graduate success. “You are in the mind of an excellent mind,” she said, encouraging students to continue striving for excellence and leadership in their respective fields. The 2025 CHUSS Graduate Symposium served as both a celebration of academic progress and a call to action for scholars to engage in meaningful research that addresses the needs of communities and contributes to national and global development.

The Writer is an Intern in the Public Relations Office, Makerere University

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