By: Refilwe Sebola
In an era where digital solutions dominate workplace training, a growing number of voices in the creative sector are reminding the mining industry of a powerful tool it is abandoning too quickly, industrial theatre. Among these voices is mining executive Praise Ragimana, who warns that the sector risks losing one of the most effective behavioural change mechanisms ever used underground. “We must never underestimate what professional actors bring to industrial theatre,” Ragimana says. “When it is done properly, not in a patronising or superficial way, it reaches people at a human level. It changes behaviour.”
Long before animated videos, virtual training modules and interactive e-learning portals became the norm, professional actors were walking into mine shafts, change rooms and training centres, bringing safety messages to life in a way no screen ever could. Today, many performers say mining companies are turning away from them, choosing cheaper and more automated communication tools. But their message remains clear, industrial theatre is unmatched when it comes to shifting behaviour, igniting emotional engagement and saving lives underground.
Industrial theatre matters because mining environments remain among the most hazardous workplaces in the world. While the workforce is becoming more skilled, there is still a large proportion of unskilled and semi-skilled labour that benefits most from communication methods that are human, relatable and emotionally resonant. When executed professionally, industrial theatre humanises the message, bridges literacy and language gaps, makes the invisible visible, and creates a two-way experience.
Replacing people with screens has its limits. While training videos and animations have value, they do not offer the personal touch required for real behaviour change. As one veteran performer noted, “A video can show you the rules, but an actor can make you feel the consequences.”
Praise Ragimana emphasises that behaviour change is not just about knowing the rules but internalising them. “A video can inform you,” he says. “But a live performance can transform you. And that transformation saves lives.”
Actors across South Africa’s creative sector who have dedicated years to industrial theatre say mining companies are quietly phasing them out, often with serious consequences for safety culture.
Moving forward, experts agree that technology should complement human engagement, not replace it.
In conclusion, the value of human connection cannot be digitised. As Ragimana puts it, “We can modernise training, but we cannot digitise humanity. Industrial theatre remains essential because it speaks to the heart. And in mining, the heart is what keeps workers alive.”