The Zabalaza Theatre Festival is an annual South African theatre festival held in Cape Town. The festival takes place at the Baxter Theatre Centre and presents communityâÂÂbased and emerging theatre productions. It has been held annually since 2011.
The Zabalaza Theatre Festival was established in 2011 as a platform for community and emerging theatre practitioners. Since its establishment, the festival has been presented annually and forms part of Cape Town's theatre calendar.
The festival presents a programme of short theatrical productions selected through an application and adjudication process. Performances are staged over a limited period during the festival season. Selected productions may receive further presentation opportunities following the festival.
At the conclusion of each festival, award presentations are held for selected productions. The primary award is known as the Best of Zabalaza or Finest of the Fest.
The 2020 edition of the festival presented awards in multiple categories. The winners listed below are based on reporting from the festival's award ceremony.
The following is a list of productions awarded the festival's Best Production (or Best of Zabalaza) prize in years where verifiable secondary sources exist:
The festival has been covered by South African newspapers, lifestyle publications, and arts journalism platforms, with reporting focusing on its annual programming and awards. Some productions have gone on to additional seasons or further performances after their recognition at Zabalaza.