MOSES’ Music, Dance, Drama and Photography Competition

January 5, 2025

The Photography Inspiring Children in Conservation (PICC) team provides photography and communication skills to students and community leaders, and aims to empower the participants to use their new capabilities to share conservation messages through their photographs and stories. 

We are tremendously proud of our students’ initiative and efforts when they take these new skills and excel at them! The BACHO-K Youth in Rwenshama, Uganda, have done just that, putting together such an impressive collection of photography, music, dance, and drama that they were honored by winning a number of first place finishes in the inaugural Music, Dance, Drama and Photography Competitions of Rwenshama Community, Rukungiri District. 

The following article, by Uganda Broadcast Society Editor Alaari, describes this inaugural competition in visual and performance arts, held January 5, 2025 at the Bwambara and Bugangari playgrounds in Rukungiri District, Uganda.

An Inaugural Visual and Performance Arts Competition 

By UBS TV Editor Alaari

The Music, Dance, Drama and Photography Competitions of Rwenshama Community, Rukungiri District, drew hundreds of participants and spectators. 

Hosted by Moses Baluku, a businessman in the communities of Queen Elizabeth National Park, the January 5, 2025 competition came alive with the vibrant energy of young talent as it showcased the exceptional artistic abilities of students from across the communities of Queen Elizabeth National Park.

The competition featured a diverse range of  performances, including captivating vocal solos and duets, mesmerizing dance routines spanning traditional and contemporary styles, photography, film-making and thought-provoking theatrical productions. Students from various schools and community groups competed fiercely, demonstrating their dedication and passion for the performing arts. Mr. Moses stated his hopes for the event “for these competitions to nurture and encourage the artistic talents of our youth. These young people are the future of our community, and I am incredibly proud of their creative and hard work”.

The competitions were judged by a panel of esteemed professionals from the arts community, including Timmothy Charles Turyamureba and Monic Muheru. Prizes were awarded in various categories, including Best Vocal Performance, Best Photographer, Best Dance Performance, Best Drama Production and overall Best Performance. The winners from BACHO-K were: Photography – Gilaan Livingstone; Best Performer/ Dancer – Amanya Tonny; Best Solo Vocalist – Abaho Spencer; and the Best Story – Akiikih Appollo B., the founder of BACHO-K .

The winning BACHO-K youth were presented with gold medals, books and pens. The MOSES’ Music, Dance, Drama and Photography competitions were a resounding success, leaving a lasting impact on the community. These competitions provide a valuable platform for young artists to showcase talents, gain valuable experience, and inspire others.

AKIIKIH APPOLLO, the founder of BACHO-K, appreciated Kathy West, the Director of PICC, from the USA, for supporting the youth by providing them with a Canon DSLR camera and lenses and training them in photography. Mr. Appollo also thanked the organizer for having put on these competitions which has helped so much to keep youth busy and developing their talents.

Akiikih has continued to share the knowledge and resources with the children and youth when they are in Rwenshama on school holiday. December 2024 included a PICC workshop on Lake Edward with photography and drawing. 

We want to take this opportunity to recognize the extraordinary efforts of some of the participants that trained with PICC and have shared their knowledge and passion to train others in their community –– especially Everisto Tugeineyo and Akiikih Appollo, See the student images page for the students’ amazing photos from the PICC workshop in Queen Elizabeth National Park, July 2025, and here for the BACHO-K art workshop.

 

BACHO-K students’ images from 2024 PICC workshop in Queen Elizabeth National Park (see more at images page)