A centennial stage reborn in the capital
The faint smell of freshly sanded timber still hovers in the corridors of the Centre de formation et de recherche en art dramatique. For decades the Cfrad, housed in what was once the colonial Cercle civil et militaire, stood as a silent witness to Brazzaville’s cultural ascendancy and subsequent neglect. Roofing panels warped under tropical rains, rehearsal rooms gathered dust and memories. In 2022 the Ministry of Culture launched an ambitious rehabilitation programme, matching public funds with private sponsorship to restore the venue ahead of the 80th anniversary of the 1944 Brazzaville Conference. Contractors have now stabilised the façade, reopened the orchestra pit and installed state-of-the-art projectors. The 11 October avant-première of « Mémoires du Cfrad » will therefore serve a double purpose: unveiling a film and unveiling a building.
Hassim Tall Boukambou, filmmaker-archivist
Born in Brazzaville in 1972, Hassim Tall Boukambou belongs to that discreet generation of directors who see the camera as a repository rather than a mere lens. His documentary trilogy « Révolutionnaire(s) » has been cited in several university syllabi for its granular reading of the Three Glorious Days of August 1963. Critics often compare his method to oral-history fieldwork: he records testimonies, labels each reel with obsessive precision and negotiates footage donations from private families. In an interview granted during the final mix of the new film, Boukambou stressed that « archives are not luxury objects; they are passports for tomorrow ». That credo shapes « Mémoires du Cfrad », whose script stitches together newsreels, diary fragments and artistic reenactments to trace a cultural lineage from celebrated singer Franklin Boukaka to today’s slam artist Mariusca Moukengue.
A historical tapestry from 1904 to 2024
Running just under two hours, the film opens with sepia photographs of railway labourers unloading stage planks in 1904, before segueing to colourised footage of General de Gaulle addressing Free-French officers on the very premises in 1944. Subsequent chapters revisit the vibrant 1960s theatre scene led by Maxime Ndebeka and the resonant protest songs of the 1970s. The final act brings the audience into the digital present, overlaying drone shots of modern Brazzaville with spoken-word pieces recorded inside the refurbished hall. This temporal sweep, reviewers who attended closed previews say, eschews nostalgia in favour of connective tissue: each decade is portrayed as paving the way for the next. That approach dovetails with the national objective, articulated in the government’s 2022–2026 Cultural Strategy, to safeguard heritage while projecting it towards contemporary creation.
À retenir: a civic rendez-vous beyond cinema
Tickets for the premiere went on sale three weeks ago and sold out within 48 hours, an encouraging sign for exhibitors whose box-office numbers dipped during the pandemic. Organisers expect an audience that extends well beyond film enthusiasts. Alumni of the Cfrad’s early cohorts intend to attend in traditional attire; high-school teachers have scheduled field trips; a delegation from the CEMAC Secretariat is reportedly arranging a study visit on cultural infrastructure. For the municipal authorities, the occasion functions as a soft-power showcase: Brazzaville aims to position itself as a regional festival hub, complementing its role in African music after the 2015 Pan-African Music Festival. The ministry has accordingly authorised street performances and pop-up craft stands around CanalOlympia to create a festive corridor linking the cinema to the Cfrad premises two kilometres away.
Le point économique: ripple effects for creative industries
Beyond symbolism, the refurbishment has pragmatic implications. Construction contracts worth 1.4 billion FCFA have been awarded to Congolese firms, generating nearly 150 skilled jobs according to the project’s latest quarterly report. The National Tourism Board projects a 12 percent uptick in cultural tourism once the Cfrad opens permanently, citing comparable case studies in Ouagadougou and Dakar. Film distributors, for their part, view « Mémoires du Cfrad » as a test case for wider regional releases: if box-office returns in Brazzaville meet expectations, the title will tour Douala, Libreville and Bangui under a revenue-sharing agreement negotiated with CanalOlympia. The synergy aligns with President Denis Sassou Nguesso’s emphasis, reiterated during last year’s State of the Nation Address, on diversifying the economy through the creative sector and turning intangible heritage into a source of tangible growth.
Education and memory, hand in hand
Once the credits roll, a moderated conversation between Boukambou and history professor Odette Ngangoue will open the floor to questions on archival pedagogy. The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has already pre-ordered 500 DVD sets for use in civics classes. For curriculum designer Albert Okemba, the film represents “a moving slide-deck” that anchors abstract dates in palpable images. That educational outreach is expected to complement the Cfrad’s future residency programme, through which theatre students will digitise and curate personal memorabilia donated by citizens during the recent call for collections. Over time, the venue’s permanent exhibition may become a living textbook, reminding visitors that culture is not a luxury adjunct but a public resource.
Looking further down the timeline
As the spotlights prepare to illuminate CanalOlympia on 11 October, the organisers’ ambitions stretch well beyond a single evening. Talks are underway with the French Institute and UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme to secure technical assistance for long-term conservation of the new digital archive. Boukambou, meanwhile, hints at expanding the project into a multimedia installation combining holographic reconstructions of past performances with live actors. While details remain under wraps, the notion captures a broader trajectory: Brazzaville’s cultural sector is entering a phase of experimentation that draws authority from its past even as it courts technological novelty. In that sense, « Mémoires du Cfrad » is less a valedictory tribute than a prologue to the stories still to be staged under the newly polished proscenium of the Cfrad.
