Story teller on a mission

A decline in young people taking membership at local libraries has prompted renowned story teller Mzwandile Ntombela to embark on a drive to make the youth not only love reading, but to realise the role of libraries as an important source of knowledge.

Ntombela said it was worrying that young people had become so distant from libraries. He also expressed concern at earlier findings that most children in early grades were unable to read for meaning. This called for an “out of the box” approach, which he believes he brings with his method.

“If the local libraries were a private company surely there would be a declaration of bankruptcy by now when you look at how few young people use such facilities,” he said.

Ntombela, who was born in uMlazi in 1994, matriculated from Zwelethu High School. His exposure to storytelling began at Stable Theatre in 2011 where he was assistant stage manager and got a chance to act in some of the productions there.

“In 2012, I won an audition to be part of a production at the Playhouse under the African Ignite banner, and from then I have been part of a number of productions,” Ntombela said.

One of the key moments in his career was meeting legendary story teller, Gcina Mhlophe in 2014.

“That meeting and engagement opened my eyes on the power of story telling and has pretty much made me appreciate what creative art is about and can achieve,” said Ntombela.

“The important thing is to appreciate that today’s kids are drawn to gadgets primarily because they offer fun and games, and the challenge is how to make them know the importance of reading so that they develop a love thereof and learn the significance of their libraries,” Ntombela continued.

This prompted the story teller to volunteer at libraries in Durban, doing one-man performances about the importance of learning. He became a popular act with the kids at local libraries in eThekwini who listened to stories from “Malume Banana”.

Ntombela insists that this is one of the best ways of getting through to young people.

He added that because the approach was not instructive, but rather playful, it made it easy for young people to realise that libraries were not boring but could be places of fun.

“We teach through play and entertainment because in most cases something learned through such a process remains in one’s mind for a very long time.”

As part of dealing with the challenge, the story teller has partnered with Bessie Head Library under Msunduzi Municipality to run a series of workshops at township and rural libraries to encourage the use of the facilities, especially during holidays.