The Maitisong Festival started after the citizens of Gaborone felt the need to build a structure which could serve as a school hall and community center equipped to house professional performances, workshops and meetings. The building was named Maitisong, which is traditionally a place within the home where family and friends gather in the evening for entertainment such as story telling and singing. A large portion of the funding for the project came from American friends of the Maru a Pula School which first realised the need for the building. The building was constructed as a venue for the Gaborone community to share their culture with each other on a large scale. The first Maitisong Festival was staged in March of 1987 to celebrate the opening of the new building, and was so popular that the event has continued every year since then.

The annual Maitisong Festival which takes place each year in Gabarone towards the end of March, runs for nine days, and has become Botswana's largest performing arts festival. The festival provides a valuable showcase for both established and emerging local talent, and takes place in a number of venues throughout Botswana's capital city, which takes on a pleasant carnival atmosphere. The Maitisong festival features a wide variety of performances which include theatre, traditional music and dance, choirs, marimba bands, and a selection of other western influenced styles of music and dance, as well as a variety of street vendors selling food and drink.

The festival programme features two parts, namely the indoor and outdoor programmes. The indoor programme is staged at four centres around Gaborone and provides visitors with the opportunity to to view a number of shows which are staged each day of the festival. Venues fro the indoor programme include The Little Theatre at the National Museum, where a week of local drama is staged, the Anglican Cathedral, and the Northside Primary School. The indoor programme is ticketed and in the past has featured many prominent acts from around Africa.

The outdoor programme is staged throughout four areas within the city, two of which are high density, low income areas and the other two are popular shopping malls. Stages and seating are built in these areas and a week of free daytime and night time performances is arranged for the citizens to enjoy. The Maitisong festival's outdoor programme also makes use of the State Theatre / Transnet Truck from Pretoria, which is a mobile stage used to transport shows from the festival to nearby villages. The locals who participate in the Festival represent mainly traditional Botswana dance and drama, which is extremely popular in the country. Even during the intervals the entertainment continues, with impromptu musicians, dancers and comics making appearances on stage and adding to the infectious festive spirit.

For more information regarding their Maitisong festival call +267 371809, or fax (267) 584946