august2014
34
rivingalong thespines
ofRwanda’ssouthern
hills, ripplesof green
spreadout into the
bluedistance. Striped
with farms, fields ridged
likegreensteps, the
landwidensout slightly
asweapproachButare,
thecountry’s intellectual
capital, home to theUniversityofRwandaand
to thecountry’s first andonlywomen’s
drumming troupe, IngomaNshya.
At theTheatredesVerdures, ahuge
warehouse-likeamphitheatre just offButare’s
main road, thewomengather twiceaweek to
practise. Fourteendrumsstandwaist-high
before 14women,majestic inmatchingwhite
tank topsandbright golden robes, eachwith
apair of foot-longwoodenbatons inhand. In
front of ablackboard filledwith thesquigglesandnumbers
of apast lecture, they face theascending rowsof empty
seats, facesstill, bodies relaxed. I slide intoachair. There
isamoment of silence. And then thesound isdeafening,
filling theentirespaceandburstingout of theopendoors
into thebright sunshineoutside.
When thewomendrum, their performance isecstatic.
Theybeat the tall drumswithsuchstrengthandpower, at
timesgrinning, at timesutterly fierce, that their rhythms
shakeyour bones, beatinga languageof joywithan
exuberance that is infectious.
Thewomensway fromside toside, in timewith the
slower beats.When the tempopicksup, youcanhardlysee
their drummingsticks. They leapoff the floor throwing their
entirebodyweight into thedrum, alternatingbetween
leadingand following.
I ammesmerisedby thesewomen. They lookmythic.
Even theslimmest, shortest of them isstrongand resilient.
Most of all, they look joyous. Youknow themomentwhen
youaresohappy, youcannot hideyour smile?This is that
moment. Youwill not beable tosit still. Youwill find
yourself smiling likea fool andsoonyouwill beonyour feet.
“Iwanted tobringwomenonstage, especially inplaceswhere theywere
excluded,”OdileGakireGatese, Rwandanplaywright, actressandactivist, says
of her inspiration to found thegroupadecadeago.
Wesit at abustling local restaurant in thecapital, Kigali. Gatese, knownby
most asKiki, ishuge-bellied, eightmonthspregnant. Shebantersbackand forth
with thewaitressand then turns tome: “Everyone isworried I’mabout togive
birth right here!But I haveanothermonth togo.”Whenshe talksabout the
originsof the troupe, Gatese isanimated, her eyeswide, herwhole frame
radiatingher passion. “Wewanted todrumbecause itwas forbidden,” shesays.
InRwanda’sancient kingdomsdrummingwasperformedonly for thekingand
onlybymen. Drumsanddrummingherehave longbeenassociatedwithpower
andpolitics; and theword itself inKinyarwanda–
ingoma
–meansbothdrumand
kingdom. Later drumswere incorporated intowar ceremoniesandothermajor
events, but they remainedstrictly theprovinceofmen.
So in2004,while teachingat theuniversity, GateseplasteredButarewith
postersappealing towomen. Despite the taboo, shegot ahuge response.One
hundredwomen from teenagers tograndmotherscame to train indrumming
