A Critically Acclaimed Play”Mwana KuChema” Returns to the Stage Following Successful Run At The 1s and 2s Theatre Festival.
After a resounding success at the 1s and 2s Theatre Festival in July, “Mwana KuChema”is set to captivate audiences once again as it returns to the spotlight at Market Theatre.
The play,which made its debut to widespread acclaim at the Tembisa Theatre Festival in February 2023,is an artistic masterpiece that delves into the intricate journey of self-discovery within the context of a family’s well-guarded secret.
Written and directed by the immensely talented Linda Wa Ka Shabangu.
“Mwana KuChema” is a compelling narrative that transcends time and space,interweaving the past,present,and future.
The play serves as a powerful exploration of forgiveness and the quest for healing,resonating not only within individuals but also echoing through our society,communities, and homes.
Through its poignant storytelling,”Mwana KuChema”raises thought-provoking questions about the challenges of existence in an increasingly deteriorating environment.
The play offers a searing commentary on humanity’s struggle to coexist within the confines of township life,shedding light on the fractures within family structures,the depths of self-destruction, and the enduring power of parental love and guidance in black communities.
At the heart of “Mwana KuChema”is the heart-wrenching journey of Tswarelo,a character whose path of self-destruction and eventual self-discovery grips the audience’s emotions.
The play navigates through Tswarelo’s pursuit of answers to life’s most pressing questions,all while attempting to escape the harsh realities that surround her.
“Mwana KuChema”is a theatrical experience that transcends age barriers,offering a profound reflection on the nature of townships and the crucial role of parental guidance in shaping our understanding of the world.
Audiences ranging from teenagers to adults are invited to witness this extraordinary production,which promises to leave an indelible mark on hearts and minds alike.
For more information about “Mwana KuChema” and ticket details, please visit www.markettheatre.co.za.
Stay updated on the latest news by following Linda Wa Ka Shabangu’s official Facebook page.
Tickets are also available for purchase at webticket.co.za or directly at the door of the Market Theatre.
Don’t miss the opportunity to experience “Mwana KuChema” live on stage.
Date: 20-23 September 2023
Venue: Market Theatre
Ticket Price: R100
For media inquiries, interviews, and press passes, please contact:
This story follows four young girls aged 12 to 16 years and it explores their curiosity with life in the living and life after death. They explore this in their childlike manner, through the games they play together and the stories they have been told by elders. They create a whole new world of their own where there is a strong division between Lana (the land of the living) and Ngaphesheya (the land of the dead where the cemetery lies). They are met with a new friend who emerges from the other world of Ngaphesheya, whom they accept into their everyday living of playfulness and welcoming this new member into their circle changes their lives.
In Ngaphesheya, the 6th edition of the Kwasha! Theatre Company showcases an amazing piece that draws light to the themes of death, purgatory and paranormality. They do this by telling the story in narration, song and physical chorus work. Although, the story is told in a light manner, events get darker as all the characters find themselves experiencing a whole new forbidden land that is introduced by the character of Pinkie. We witness the other three girls, Nobahle (16), Sphiwo (12) and Owethu (14) being influenced by Pinkie to explore the land of Ngaphesheya, a land that has always remained unknown to them. With young Sphiwo longing to again see her late mother and twin sister who passed during childbirth, an interest to visit the other world is evoked. Will this journey feed their curiosity or further swallow them into a world of darkness?
Growing up in a village in the Eastern Cape, many stories and superstitions surrounding death and the afterlife were passed down generations. “Never point at a grave” – or you’ll be inviting death unto your family, “Never whistle indoors” – uyahlola (you are attracting the tragedy of death), “Hold your breath when passing through or driving past a cemetery” – you might inhale an evil force or a recently departed spirit looking to take up residency in your body, to name a few.
This planted curiosity in me about what truly happens when people crossover, is there a life after death?
I have since learned that not everyone who crosses over gets the everlasting peace that is promised upon death. In Ngaphesheya, we explore and imagine what happens in the other world as we paint our own picture of what life after death may look like.
Directing a theatre production has always been a dream for me and I am grateful for the opportunity to do so beside an incredibly talented group of female performers. Taking up this role is something very special to me, it plays a part in me trusting myself and growing as a creative. It definitely is something that will forever be engraved in my journey as a young artist.
A very huge and special thank you goes out to our mentor in this process, Aus’ Momo Matsunyane, ndibamba ngazo zozibini. Thank you for seeing our story, believing in it and guiding us to tell it in the greatest way. You’re phenomenal.
I hope everyone enjoys our story as much as we did making it.
MENTOR
KGOMOTSO ‘MOMO’ MATSUNYANE
Kgomotso ‘MoMo’ Matsunyane (b. 1988) is an actor, playwright and director. She has performed in numerous plays, films and television shows and has subsequently been nominated for and won several awards including: Hlakanyana The Musical, which won a whopping 8 out of the 14 awards they were nominated for at the 2023 Naledi’s. Matsunyane won for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for her role as Mawethu along with Best Ensemble and Best Production of a Musical; Best Actress in A Leading Role (Have You Seen
Zandile? ;Naledi Theatre Awards 2014), Best Supporting Actress (Ankobia ;SA Theatre Magazine Awards 2017), Best Ensemble (Animal Farm; Naledi Theatre Awards 2015), Best Supporting Role (Tsotsi The Musical; Fleur Du Cap Awards 2018) amongst many others.
She has also recently acted in a new sketch comedy show called ROSA directed by Kagiso Lediga scheduled to play on popular streaming network, Netflix in 2023. In the same year Matsunyane was festival director for the acclaimed Zwakala Festival and will be mentoring the winning group as the show takes to the stage in October 2023.
MoMo has been a professional actor since 2004. She obtained an Honours Degree in Dramatic Arts from Wits University in 2012, majoring in Performance as well as Film and Television. In 2022 she performed in If A Tree Falls which was also directed by acclaimed director
Janice Honeyman. In 2020, she performed in Switzerland in Converting Eviction. In 2021, MoMo was the Head Writer of a new musical produced by Madevu Entertainment and UJ
Arts Centre called Hlakanyana directed by Janice Honeyman. She was also cast in Standard Bank Young Artist Award Winner for Dance, Lulu Mlangeni’s NAF production Kganya which made its live debut at the internationally acclaimed festival Afrovibes in 2022 and it will also be playing at The State Theatre in July 2023.
STAGE MANAGER
ZAMANTIMANDE SHONGWE
Zamantimande Shongwe, a venue technician. I graduated with a BA in Drama & Theatre Studies (Technical) at the University of Stellenbosch. I specialise in stage management and lighting but am skilled in costume making, production management, continuity, video production, décor, props, sound and stage make up. I am from the East Rand, Johannesburg and am currently working at the Market theatre Laboratory.
I am the stage manager for Ngaphesheya by Kwasha the 6th.
CAST
NONTUTHUKO AZANDE MKHUNGO
Nontuthuko Azande Mkhungo is originally from KwaZulu-Natal, Durban. She obtained a degree in Bachelor of live Performance (stage & screen acting) at AFDA Johannesburg in 2017. She has the utmost respect & passion for the arts – in its entire form that is whether it’s on stage, screen or behind the scenes.
She is an extremely hardworking and talented theatre practitioner & screen actor. She is a musician, presenter and dancer. She is also very skilled when it comes to behind the scenes work which includes editing, logging & cinematography.
She lives by a mantra that she has created for herself which is: “I have no plan B because art is all I know”.
CAST
NDONIE NTSHIZA
Ndonie Ntshiza was born and bred in Underberg, KwaZulu-Natal. She is a 23 year old qualified theater and screen actress. During her years of studying she took part in presenting classes.
Later on, she obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Live Performance at the School for the Creative Economy, AFDA. Shortly after, she was selected to join Duma Ndlovu’s Actor’s Academy, a space that presented her with theater and television acting roles. Currently, she is part of the 6th edition of the Kwasha! Theatre Company.
Ndonie shows great interest in voice acting, improvisation and writing in her home language, isiZulu. She continues to work on her standard American and British accents.
Her latest project is the theater production, NGAPHESHEYA. A play that’s allowed her to exercise her additional skills: producing, character styling and writing – a hobby she intends to develop in the near future.
CAST
NGWEDI
Ngwedi is a Theatre and Performance graduate from The Market Theatre Laboratory with a gentle spirit. She was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa and is 22 years of age. She is currently under a theatre company called Kwasha The 6th. She is an observer and storyteller. She is a vessel for expression and often finds her voice rooted in the intricacies of the human experience. As a writer at heart, a large part of her work exists with a sense of poetry. She is also a mover, whose skills lie in physical theatre. Ngwedi is a body that is constantly in a state of becoming and she uses this to challenge the constructs of theatre.
CAST
SINEGUGU SHANTEL MDLULI
Sinegugu Shantel Mdluli, is a 21 year old theatre performer and vocalist originally from Mpumalanga.
She recently graduated from Tshwane University of Technology with a diploma in Performing arts specialising in Musical Theatre. Her musical theatre practice explored tap dance, ballet, theatre dance as well as vocal training and acting. Her experience of theatre performance is mainly tertiary based with productions from Breytenbach theatre as well as The South African State Theatre such as Before and After! musical, Eviction Dance production, Sheila’s day, Mbombozone the musical amongst many others.
She is currently under the 6th Kwasha! Theatre Company at The Market Theatre Foundation in collaboration with Windybrow Arts centre.
She aspires to work on more platforms that will enhance her artistic self.
A Marry Little Christmas, a new South African Comedy by Greg Homann
The Market Theatre and How Now Brown Cow Productions are proud to announce their partnership on a brand new South African comedy, A MARRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS by Greg Homann.
This end-of-the-year offering is set to be a highlight of Johannesburg’s festive season as it takes to the John Kani stage from 29 November to 24 December 2023.
A MARRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS was commissioned out of How Now Brown Cow’s Writer’s Collective during the 2020 Pandemic shutdown. It was written by Greg Homann before he took on the appointment as the Market Theatre’s Artistic Director in January of this year. This premiere production of the laugh-a-minute play will be directed by multiple award-winning Charmaine Weir-Smith featuring an impressive cast of nine.
Owner of How Now Brown Cow Productions, Julie-Anne McDowell says, “How Now Brown Cow is thrilled to see the first of The Writers’ Collective plays by Greg Homann go from the page to the stage. We are proud to present a brand spanking new South African festive offering in co-production with The Market Theatre on the John Kani stage with some of the best loved local talent”.
This hilarious new South African play is set on an unnamed golf-estate somewhere on the north-west edge of Johannesburg and promises to be the heart-warming holiday comedy you need at the end of this year. It’s story about family, love, misunderstandings, and the topsy-turvy nature of following cultural practices will lift spirits and leave you smiling.
Arnold Hartmann is 45 and three quarters. He has big plans to propose to Natalie Cloete before hosting the perfect ‘traditional’ Christmas lunch to unify his and her family. But a nightmare has caused him to oversleep, and before he can build up the courage to pop the question, the two families have started to arrive …
Homann says, “This play has been a few years in the making, with the initial idea for it dating back to an animated festive lunch with my own family. Although not based directly on my family, the roots of it are deeply connected to my own families dynamics and antics.”
The sensational cast features some of South Africa’s best loved talent and stars, Antony Coleman (Houseboy, Borderline) and Kim Cloete (Joanie Galant – Hulle) return to The Market as the leading couple at the centre of the comedy. They are joined by James Borthwick (Amadeus, Uncle Vanya), Judy Ditchfield, (6 Dance Lessons in 6 Weeks, Menopause The Musical), Louise Saint-Claire (My Name is Asher Lev, Pterodactyls), Ilse Klink (The Amen Corner, Mamma Mia), Roberto Pombo (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Epicene Butcher), Zolani Shangase (West Side Story, The Color Purple), and Trevor Lynch (In the Blood, Hunters Gatherers).
Come and start your end-of-year festivities at The Market Theatre this year!
Tickets range in price from R150 to R250. For your not-to-be-missed-end-of-year outing, book via webtickets or call for discounted block bookings.
To make block bookings and discounts please contact Anthony Ezeoke 011 832 1641ext 203/ 083 246 4950
NOTES TO EDITORS
GREG HOMANN – Writer
Greg Homann is the Artistic Director of the iconic Market Theatre. He has been a leading figure in the South African theatrical landscape for well over a decade. His influential work as a director, dramaturg, and playwright includes award-winning and imaginative theatre across a wide range of forms. Amongst his 25 professional directing credits are eleven world premieres – six of them being new South African plays.
Greg’s produced work as a writer to date include seven plays, a co-written musical, and two adaptions of operas into pocket-size versions for small casts.
His most celebrated plays include A Voice I Cannot Silence which he co-wrote with Ralph Lawson, and which enjoyed a national tour around South Africa and won Best New South African Play of 2015; his Standard Bank Young Artist Award play, Oedipus @ Koö-Nú!; and the Ovation Award-winning One Woman Farce.
In June 2022 he premiered a new verbatim-based play called In Our Skin with the Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) in Birmingham. His most recently staged work is a new version of Eugène Ionesco’s play, The Lesson which he adapted and directed under commission from The Market Theatre in 2022.
CHARMAINE WEIR-SMITH – Director
Charmaine is an award-winning actress and director. She won theVitaAward for Best Supporting Actressfor her portrayal of Ophelia in “Hamlet”. She played Daisy in “The Young Visitors” – VitaNomination for Best Actress, Agnes in “Agnes of God” and Em in “A Story of an African Farm” to name a few. Charmaine received the NalediAward for Best Actress in aComedy for “2 4 The Price of 1”and for Sylvaine Strike’s “Pregnant Pause” a Naledi Award Nomination for Best Actress. For six seasons, Charmaine played Shanell in Paul Slabolepszy’s “Suddenly the Storm” for which she was nominated for Naledi andFleur du Cap awards.
Charmaine’s directing credits include: The Vita nominated musical “I Love you, You’re Perfect, Now Change”, “Annie” – Vita Award for Best Musical Production, “Big Band Blast” – Naledi Award for Best Musical, “Captain Entertainment” – Naledi Award BestRevue, “Tale of the Allergists Wife” and “Glorious”. She directed Nick Boraine in “Sic” which toured South Africa and had a successful off-Broadway run in New York. She directed Athol Fugard’s “The Train Driver” for The Market Theatre – Naledi Award for BestDirector and in 2022/3 “The Beauty Queen of Leenane” for How Now Brown Cow Productions, winning 5 Naledi TheatreAwards including Best Director for Charmaine and Best Production. In 2023, Charmaine directed two sold-out seasons of “Nothing But The Truth” for The Theatre on the Square.
Charmaine’s television and film career has spanned more than two decades with lead roles in Isidingo, Binnelanders and Scandal and in the UK ITV’s production of “Wild at Heart” and Showmax’s “The Girl from St Agnes”.
Her latest film credits include Netflix’s “Jadotville” and “The Jakes Are Missing”.
FOSTERING INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP IN THE ARTS - THE MARKET THEATRE LABORATORY'S THEATRE THINK TANK RETURNS FOR A SECOND INSTALLMENT
The Market Theatre Laboratory presents the second Theatre Think Tank instalment, curated by cultural policy specialist, Boitumelo ‘Tumy’ Motsoatsoe. After the success of the first instalment at this year’s National Arts Festival, The Market Lab now hosts a free conversation focussing on succession planning in the arts and culture sector.
The Theatre Think Tank instalments, funded by the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS), serve as an exploration and reflection on the wealth of knowledge enacted, embodied and performed by practitioners in the arts and culture field, specifically with the intention of gathering and organising this knowledge in a way that draws on the knowledge of local communities, and made accessible to the greater community.
Speaking on the upcoming Theatre Think Tank, Cherae Halley, the head of The Market Theatre Lab has this to say:
“This second Theatre Think Tank for 2023, titled Connected Circles: Fosta-ring an inclusive, intergenerational and interdependent community of creative leaders and intermediaries, is an exciting opportunity for us to speak back to the succession of leadership in our sector. As someone who has stepped into a leadership role, I am certain that the conversation is one of great value and will contribute significantly to research through an intergenerational approach”.
“Bula(ng) Sekele!” which loosely means: “make the circle bigger” is a phrase used in children’s games and later popularised through a pop song produced by Thabo Bogopa Junior (JR). It is also the point of departure for the Connected Circles Theatre Think Tank, challenging leaders and intermediaries in the creative sector to consider the role that a more interconnected and inclusive community might play in the process of rebuilding and repositioning the sector post COVID-19.
Borrowing from the principles of Sankofa, Ubuntu and Emergent Strategy by writer and activist, adrienne maree brown, the Theatre Think Tank aims to deliberately convene different generations or exclusive circles of creative leaders and intermediaries, from various schools of thought, into one space, where they can reflect and share ideas/ideals on how to meaningfully create linkages or pathways between these circles.
Through this Think Tank experience, Tumy invites our greater community to share their thoughts on the role that interdependent and inclusive leadership can play in building broader capacity, fostering accountability, enabling succession planning and in facilitating a meaningful flow of power and resources across the network. While initiating a lekgotla that expands on the notion of a fishbowl, Tumy will probe the following questions to be discussed:
“What are the core “eco-systemic” challenges that have created these barriers of collaboration and how can we work together to break them down? Equally so, what does a thriving sector look like and how can we make it accessible to diverse individuals?”
If you are engaged in the arts, or are just curious, don’t miss The Connected Circles Theatre Think Tank which takes place on Sunday the 17th of September at The Market Theatre Laboratory in Newtown at 14h00.
For information on reservations and further enquiries please contact The Market Theatre Laboratory on 011 838 7498 or contact Thandeka Nheke on thandeka@marketlab.co.za
Legendary Soweto songbrid Abigail Kubeka has been announced as the surprise guest star at the one-night-only limited-tickets Mayibuye iAfrika Concert: A Celebration of Exiled Musicians and Composers.
Renowned South African guitarist Billy Monama, the driving force and producer of this important cultural event, will also be performing with several other legendary South African artists including Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse, Judith Sepuma and Titi Luzipo live on stage in Johannesburg.
“We had hoped to keep Abigail’s presence on stage a secret for a while longer, but a stage performance in Johannesburg from Abigail Kubeka is something you cannot keep a lid on for long,” says an excited Billy Monama.
Monama confirmed that Abigail Kubeka would join the legendary line-up, setting up the Mayibuye iAfrika concert as the not-to-be-missed musical event of the year. Monama also confirmed that ticket sales are approaching sold-out with only a small number left – he urged the public and African music fans with an appreciation of Black Consciousness and African Freedom Struggle History to book before it was too late.
The concert will be held at the iconic Theatre of Struggle – the Market Theatre in Newtown Johannesburg – on 9 September 2023. Conducted in two parts by Grammy-Award Winning composer JB Arthur, the event will pay homage to a first exile generation of indomitable composers and a second exile generation of musicians.
Part one will comprise choral freedom songs from the earliest compositions of ANC exiles in Tanganyika, now Tanzania. The fresh arrangement will feature work by Vuyisile Mini, Zinakele Nkaba and Wilson Khayinga.
Under the direction of Monama and led by The Grazroots Project Orkestra featuring bandleaders and composers: Sydney Mavundla, Lucas Senyatso, Themba Mokoena and Mduduzi Mtshali, the second segment will pay tribute to the anti-apartheid stalwarts and towering figures in the local and international music landscape, Letta Mbulu, Dorothy Masuka, Busi Mhlongo, Miriam Makeba, Jonas Gwangwa and Hugh Masekela.
Mayibuye iAfrika: The South African Freedom Songs will be remembered as vital to documenting and disseminating South Africa’s generational music knowledge and a source of musical inspiration.
About Billy Monama:
A guitarist since 1997, composer, arranger and author Billy Monama has gone on to perform and record with a host of South Africa’s legends including Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse, Mbongeni Ngema, Abigail Kubeka and others. While his music is often ineffable, Monama exalts South Africa’s jazz genius through his arrangements and performances.
Notes to Editors:
Artists featured in the line-up are available for radio, print and TV interviews.
Tickets are available at web tickets at R350 per person, tickets for pensioners and students available at R175.
A multimedia concert unearths the buried music of South African composer, Reuben T Caluza
Reuben Tholakele Caluza (1895 to1969) was once a household name in South Africa. For decades though his music was largely forgotten in the sound archives of music history. Now, a multimedia concert at The Market Theatre by acclaimed contemporary musicians, sets out to change that.
As part of Heritage Month, Reuben T. Caluza – The B-side will celebrate a musical legacy of one of South Africa’s most accomplished composers. The performance will feature imaginative new interpretations of songs based on the original recorded album, called The Double Quartet, that Caluza made in London in 1930.
Caluza’s lyrics were often commentaries on the social issues of the day, ranging from the brutal apartheid laws coming into effect in the early 1900s, to his critical views on the growing aspirations of the Black middle class living in the cities of Joburg and Durban. His work was influenced by a variety of styles and idioms from choral hymns to ragtime and protest music.
The project to re-introduce Caluza’s music is led and arranged by the internationally acclaimed composer Philip Miller, together with his collaborator, Tshegofatso Moeng, a multi-talented musical opera singer and composer. An impressive ensemble of singers join Miller and Moeng, alongside award-winning theatre-maker Khayelihle Dominique Gumede who directs the concert.
The project began at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, when Miller came across the song ‘Influenza’ (1918) which Caluza had written in response to the devastation of the Spanish flu pandemic in South Africa. It resonated so powerfully at that time, that Miller and Moeng brought together a talented ensemble of twelve singers to record this song remotely, raising awareness of the plight of singers who were struggling to make ends meet.
The Brazilian video designer, Marcos Martins joined the project. He created a video on social media, using mostly cellphone video footage filmed by the singers who were isolating in their homes during the hard lockdown. Miller says that, “The response to the song was so overwhelmingly positive that the they collaboratively continued to learn, arrange and record more of Caluza’s incredible repertoire.”
Miller adds, “It become clear that Caluza’s music, and the messages of his songs still has strong relevance today.”
Martins has gone on to create twelve unique films that now provide a contemporary visual response to the music that is to be presented theatrically in this dynamic multimedia concert. He uses a rich mixture of visual languages ranging from original filmed footage, archival material, and typographic animations and drawings.
The singing team includes many of the singers who have collaborated with Miller and Moeng over the years – most of them would have been heard singing Millers music for William Kentridge’s work: The Head and the Load that was seen earlier this year at the Joburg Theatre.
The singers include: Ayanda Eleki, Ann Masina, Bulelani Madondile, Nokuthula Magubane, Lydia Manyama, Zebulon Mmusi, Mhlaba Buthelezi, Mapule Moloi, Lindokuhle Thabede, Lubabalo Velebayi and Bham Ntabeni.
Other great instrumentalists like Dan Selsick, trumpeter Adam Howard, cellist Kutlwano Masote, and bassist Thembinkosi Mavimbela complete the ensemble which has led to the creation of the concert and digital album, entitled Reuben T Caluza – The B-side.
Don’t miss this exciting concert over Heritage Day weekend that aims to advance the legacy of South Africa’s rich musical history.
“Learning about Caluza has been a revelation to me…” – Albie Sachs, Former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa
…a perfect example of how the rich archive of black South African musical traditions may still speak to contemporary issues and audiences. – Prof. Veit Erlmann, Professor of Ethnomusicology and Anthropology, Butler School of Music, University of Texas at Austin
To make block bookings and discounts please contact Anthony Ezeoke 011 832 1641ext 203/ 083 246 4950
For further information, interviews and images, contact:
JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience at The Market Theatre 13-16 September
The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Art’s JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience celebrates its 25th anniversary year – and now as part of the milestone celebrations will have short season in association with The Market Theatre, Johannesburg from 13 to 16 September.
The 25th year firmly sets JOMBA! as the longest running contemporary dance festival in South Africa. The 13-day festival begins in Durban on Tuesday 29 August with JOMBA! Legacy Artist Mamela Nyamza’s work titled HATCHED ENSEMBLE.
For the Market season works by Mamela Nyamza (South Africa) will feature along with Hannah Ma’s hannahmadance (Germany/Luxenbourg), Virva Talonen (Finland) with the FLATFOOT Dance Company (South Africa), ACE dance and music (UK) with Serge Aimé Coulibaly (Burkina Faso) and Vincent Sekwati Mantsoe (South Africa).
The Artistic Director of The Market Theatre Foundation, Greg Homann says, “I see JOMBA! @ The Market in partnership with the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Art, as an invaluable opportunity to showcase in Johannesburg some of the very best from the South African and global dance community. The brilliant programme that Dr Lliane Loots has curated for this Joburg leg of JOMBA! is going to be a celebration to the enduring power of movement to inspire, challenge, and excite us all.”
Mamela Nyamza’s HATCHED ENSEMBLE is motivated by an original 2007 solo work which offered an autobiographical work that reflected on her life as a mother and artist. HATCHED ENSEMBLE builds on this and is now performed by seven ballet trained dancers from different racial and gendered backgrounds. Challenging issues of tradition, gender norms within the dance classics, and various issues around identity and belonging, HATCHED ENSEMBLE references both classical Western music and dance, with traditional African vocal scores.
Hannah Ma’s hannahmadance performs a work that links with South African performers Thobi Maphanga and Jabu Siphika. INVASION(S) analyses the act of invasion as the act of violently entering a (political, physical, biological) territory from a feminist, and post-migrant perspective.
With support from the Finnish Embassy (Pretoria), Virva Talonen presents a work in collaboration with Durban’s FLATFOOT Dance Company. Her Portable Home Project is a contemporary dance performance series that delves into a concept of home and its various definitions. The work is co-created by Finnish Lighting Designer Nanni Vapaavuori. Virva will also perform Nothing Personal a solo work she made in 2018 with Nanni Vapaavuori. The core of Nothing Personal lies in the relationship between the repetitive, minimalistic improvisational movement, written text and the audience.
Mamela Nyamza’s HATCHED ENSEMBLE is motivated by an original 2007 solo work which offered an autobiographical work that reflected on her life as a mother and artist. HATCHED ENSEMBLE builds on this and is now performed by seven ballet trained dancers from different racial and gendered backgrounds. Challenging issues of tradition, gender norms within the dance classics, and various issues around identity and belonging, HATCHED ENSEMBLE references both classical Western music and dance, with traditional African vocal scores.
Hannah Ma’s hannahmadance performs a work that links with South African performers Thobi Maphanga and Jabu Siphika. INVASION(S) analyses the act of invasion as the act of violently entering a (political, physical, biological) territory from a feminist, and post-migrant perspective.
With support from the Finnish Embassy (Pretoria), Virva Talonen presents a work in collaboration with Durban’s FLATFOOT Dance Company. Her Portable Home Project is a contemporary dance performance series that delves into a concept of home and its various definitions. The work is co-created by Finnish Lighting Designer Nanni Vapaavuori. Virva will also perform Nothing Personal a solo work she made in 2018 with Nanni Vapaavuori. The core of Nothing Personal lies in the relationship between the repetitive, minimalistic improvisational movement, written text and the audience.
Birmingham (UK) based ACE dance and music features in a spectacular double bill UNKNOWN REALMS – with choreography by Burkina Faso’s Serge Aimé Coulibaly and South Africa’s Vincent Sekwati Mantsoe. Coulibaly’s THE NIGHT BEFORE TOMORROW is a metaphorical night where people try to do their last dance before an uncertain tomorrow. Mantsoe’s MANA – THE POWER WITHIN which engages the sacred, ritualistic and shamanic.
In celebration of this 25th anniversary, JOMBA! will launch its special book done in partnership with the University of KwaZulu-Natal Press, and supported by IFAS and BASA. Provocatively titled, Archiving History and Memory: 25 Years of the JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience, the book has been edited by Tammy Ballantyne Webber. A special Johannesburg book launch will take place in tandem with The Market Theatre season, hosted by IFAS at Alliance Francaise Parkview on Saturday 16 September at 2pm.
JOMBA! and The Market Theatre will host four free dance workshops at the Sophiatown Studio in Newtown. Hosts of these are Vincent Mantsoe (South Africa) and ACE music and dance (UK), Mamela Nyamza (South Africa), Virva Talonen (Finland) and Hannah Ma (Germany).
Nanni Vapaavuori (Finland) hosts a lighting workshop: “LIGHT AS MATERIAL” in the Mannie Mannim Theatre at The Market. All workshops are open to dancers 16yrs and older. Booking essential with thobimaphanga@gmail.com
JOMBA! curator, Dr Lliane Loots says, “We are incredibly excited to pay our first visit to Johannesburg and The Market Theatre, and hope this is the start of a long-term partnerships that sees incredible dance being shared across our two cities and provinces. I can think of no better way to serve artists than making these partnerships a reality. This JOMBA! @The Market Theatre package showcases a broad range of contemporary styles and themes, reflecting local and global motifs that speak to our festival theme of “(in)tangible heritages.”
Blacksmith Forges a Communion of African Stories and Consciousness
The Market Theatre Foundation in collaboration with Arts Alive International Festival 2023,Arts, Culture and Heritage Presents The 2022 Zwakala Festival Winner production Blacksmith as part of the Arts Alive International Arts Festival programme which seeks to feature an array of creative offering to activate the artistic landscape.
The 2022 Zwakala Festival winners, Thabo Ramaine and Lonwabo Bhele, bring their thought-shifting production of Blacksmith to The Market Theatre, in perfect synchrony with the spirit of Heritage Month. This theatrical experience combines mask work with the mesmerizing harmonies of a live musician, weaving the threads of ancestral resonance and awakening the legacy of our heritage.
Writer and actor, Thabo Ramaine, offers a profound insight into the essence of the play: “The name ‘Blacksmith’ is a historical concept from the original meaning that describes the one who crafts weapons and sharpens metal with fire. The title of the play is the metaphor that describes the one who sharpens the mind and creates weapons of consciousness. The communion between fire and metal becomes the key significance of the communion between African stories and the minds that conceive them.”
Under the direction of Lonwabo Bhele and rooted in the urgent need to address mental slavery among Africans, Blacksmith employs inventive mask work and a live musician to bring its powerful narrative to life. When the lights come up, a man of profound significance takes center stage, entrusted with the sacred duty of preserving a heritage born from the crucible of struggle, taking you on a voyage that delves into the depths of African History’s untold truths.
This production emerged through the Incubation Programme sponsored by the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture. With a firm commitment to nurturing emerging practitioners and honing their skills. The Incubation Programme places a strong emphasis on cultivating home-grown content. Blacksmith, a testament to this initiative, is set to generate excitement among audiences, offering a compelling perspective on African narratives.
This production confronts the pivotal moments that have shaped the African trajectory under the weighty yoke of colonialism and white supremacy. Brace your mind for an emotional odyssey that challenges preconceived notions, ignites introspection, and fosters a collective awakening. Through this performance, you will bear witness to the indomitable spirit that survives adversity and the unyielding resilience that forges a future rooted in empowerment and reclamation. Allow your thoughts to be provoked, your understanding to be stretched, and your perspective to be altered by this exploration of Africa’s past and its resonating echoes in the present.
“The Market Theatre Foundation takes immense pride in supporting and showcasing the most recent Zwakala Festival-winning work,” expressed Greg Homann, the Market Theatre Artistic Director. “Thabo Ramaine and Lonwabo Bhele’s production, Blacksmith, serves as a valuable reminder that acknowledging and engaging with the impact of our colonial past is vital. It sheds a piercing light, exposing the complexities and wounds that continue to shape our nation and sense of identity. The upcoming restaging of this work in Heritage Month will no doubt encourage dialogue and contribute to a path where, one day, our colonial legacy no longer haunts us.”
Blacksmith promises to be a theatrical encounter that delves deep into the struggles and triumphs of the African experience. With Lonwabo Bhele at the helm as director, supported by mentor director MoMo Matsunyane and dramaturge mentor Monageng “Vice” Motshabi, this production guarantees a transformative journey for all who experience it.
Don’t miss the opportunity to witness the fire of resilience ignite within the hearts of us, forging a renewed sense of identity and belonging.
Blacksmith is in the newly refurbished Barney Simon Theatre at The Market Theatre from 23 September to 8 October 2023. Book your tickets now to be part of this extraordinary exploration of African stories and consciousness.
Production Creative Team:
Writer & Actor: Thabo Ramaine
Director: Lonwabo Bhele
Mentor Director: MoMo Matsunyane
Dramaturge Mentor: Monageng “Vice” Motshabi
Season: 23 September – 8 October 2023
Venue: The Mannie Manim Theatre
Performers:
Thabo Ramaine
Mpho Ramorola
To make block bookings and discounts please contact Anthony Ezeoke 011 832 1641ext 203/ 083 246 4950
For further information, interviews and images, contact:
The Market Theatre presents a new version of Eugène Ionesco’s “The Lesson” by Greg Homann starring theatre veterans Graham Hopkins and Fiona Ramsay alongside newcomer Lihle Ngubo.
This thrilling new version of Eugène Ionesco’s gripping play, The Lesson, is based on a translation by Donald Watson. It is a darkly entertaining theatre production about enforcing power by using knowledge and culture as a weapon.
Set in a small university town, an eager eighteen-year-old student arrives at the Professor’s home for a lesson. The action begins in a naturalistic way but shifts into a stylistic and visual feast as more surrealist and absurdist events take hold. What starts as a farcical interaction between the two becomes something more sinister.
The production stars two of South Africa’s most seasoned thespians, Graham Hopkins and Fiona Ramsay, who just concluded a celebrated run of Hansard at the Theatre on the Square. Joining this formidable duo is rising star Lihle Ngubo who makes her debut on the Market Theatre stage.
The original one-act play sits as a canonic piece of French playwriting by Romanian-French playwright Eugène Ionesco – one of the founding fathers of the theatre of the absurd. This well-loved play has been translated into dozens of languages, and its core message is no less relevant today than when it was first performed in the aftermath of the second world war.
This new version by multi-award-winning theatre maker, Greg Homann, has been updated to connect more directly with a South African audience. The broad structure of the play remains the same, as does the dramatic arc but the language and politics of the work has been shifted to focus on the complexity of a post-colonial education in a contemporary setting.
“I’m interested in how the legacy of a colonial education system impacts students today. The national cry to decolonise education, and especially the Rhodes Must Fall Movement, have sharply highlighted the complexity of teaching and learning in a South African university. The Lesson is a theatrical way to represent and explore that politics.” said Greg Homann
Working together with Homann as the Assistant Director is the highly creative Nana Pooe.
“After two years of being restricted to work on our theatre craft due to Covid 19, I feel extremely honoured to be working alongside Greg Homann on this production. Not only is the timing perfect but the politics which arise in The Lesson, and the themes in it, are closest to my heart – systems of oppression, social order, and education…among others” – Says Nana Pooe.
Homann moved to the UK shortly before the pandemic and returns to Johannesburg to direct this stirring and reenergized adaptation of the original play.
“Relocating to the UK in 2019 was always with the intention of continuing to create work and opportunities that were centered around being South African. I saw the move as a way to challenge how I explore my identity and theatre work beyond the space and home that was so familiar to me. The pandemic has undoubtedly made that challenge greater, and as tough as it has been, it has in some positive ways fed my creativity in aspects that I could never have imagined. I’m now more excited than ever to be back in Johannesburg to work on The Lesson at The Market Theatre with a brilliant cast and team.” concluded Greg Homann
The comic-drama’s contemporary resonances are clear – it captures the headiness and absolute power of oppressive and toxic patriarchal forms of knowledge production on unsuspecting innocents.
Don’t miss this funny, breath-taking and chilling look at what happens when power, knowledge and culture collide.
PRODUCTION INFORMATION CREATIVE TEAM
Adapter and Director: Greg Homann
Assistant Director: Nana Pooe
Lighting Designer: Nomvula Molepo
Set Designer: Wilhelm Disbergen
Sound Designer: Vangile Z. Mpumlwana
Costume Designer: Onthatile Matshidiso
Stage Manager: Bongani Motsepe
Cast:
Graham Hopkins as Professor
Fiona Ramsay as Marie
Lihle Ngubo as Student
Season: Sunday 9 October – Sunday 30 October 2022
Venue: The Mannie Manim
Performance times: Tuesday – Saturday @19h00 and Sunday @15h00
Ticket prices: Tuesday – Thursday R90
Friday – Saturday R150
Sunday – R130
To make block bookings and discounts please contact Anthony Ezeoke 011 832 1641ext 203/ 083 246 4950 or Bandile Luvalo 078 4344 860
For further information, interviews and images, contact:
_Is dancing your passion? Do you want to brush up on those moves? Well get those dancing shoes on and get ready to sweat! This course will introduce students to the world of Footwork Fusion Dance. Students meet over 10 classes on a Thursdays afternoon (6pm – 8pm), from 1 September 2022 to 3 November 2022 You don’t have to be a seasoned dancer to apply for this one, anyone with the passion to move and the dedication to learn is welcomed._
*_Feel like joining the Jiva Wena Dance Classes: Part-time? Tickets are sold through Webtickets_*
To Apply please email your CV to courses@marketlab.co.za or Whatsapp 063 361 1211
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