The Hyena’s Tuckshop

The Hyena’s Tuckshop

Hilarious Children’s Play – ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’ – a Perfect Outing for Families

Jo’burg parents, gather your little ones around the fire for a sparkling storytelling experience, fuelled with colour, giggles and life-long lessons. The Market Theatre opens its Kippies Fringe programme curated by The Art Cave with a bang by presenting an award-winning children’s play, ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’. Playing from 26 – 29 June 2025 for a total of five performances only, young audiences are up for a whirlwind of humour, music, dance and a healthy dose of rebellion in the 50-seater venue alongside The Market Theatre.

The entertaining and empowering play with music is prompted by recent reports of children dying after consuming poisoned foods sold at tuckshops and schoolgrounds, leading to greater need for innovative children’s health and safety campaigns in townships. At the centre of it is a slick and cunning hyena who runs a dodgy tuckshop on a school playground. His prices are sky-high and his products not in good condition. Yet, he always gets away with it…or so he thinks, until a brave and intelligent rabbit calls him out. What follows is a hilarious and heart-pounding showdown between truth and trickery, wrapped in a world of rhythm and colour.

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Created and directed by Mongezi Ntukwana, ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’ won Best Script and Best Director at the National Children’s Theatre’s Young Directors Festival (2025). This wildly amusing tale introduces children to ideas of justice, accountability, and resistance, all while keeping them in stitches as cartoon-style characters are brought to life with energy, wit and soul. live music gets their cute little toes tapping and beautiful hearts thumping with excitement as they dance along to the Pantsula-inspired moves.

According to Ntukwana, ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’ is not just a show but a gift that ignites imagination, builds children’s confidence and facilitates unforgettable learning experiences.

“In a world where children often sense unfairness but don’t always know how to name it, this production nudges them to ask bold questions, trust their instincts, and speak truth to power. This is theatre that respects their intelligence, nurtures their courage, and reminds them that even in a world full of ‘hyenas,’ the rabbit still has a voice, and a sharp mind,” explains Ntukwana.

The Art Cave, curators of the Kippies Fringe, add that this play captures the Fringe’s objective of presenting theatre that holds power accountable and amplifies unheard voices on the fringes of society.

“Children learn best when they’re entertained. They hold on tight to what makes them laugh and sets their spirits free. In a digital age where kids spend so much time glued to screens, ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’ goes beyond ordinary storytelling, it magically unlocks social awareness and comprehension, empowering kids to speak up for themselves,” comments Philangezwi Nxumalo, co-founder of The Art Cave.

He concludes that by taking a highly sensitive crisis and grading it to children’s understanding, this show reaffirms the role of children’s theatre as a powerful method for playful, interactive teaching and learning.

‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’ is presented by Aziye Productions in association with The Art Cave and The Market Theatre for the 2025 Kippies Fringe. Tickets for the show are available on Webtickets at just R100 for all ages. A special discount applies for groups/families of four and more, with those tickets at R80 each.

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 Kippies Fringe is an initiative of The Market Theatre, curated by The Art Cave.

 The Market Theatre is a Division of The Market Theatre Foundation, an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

 For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

 For  school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development Specialist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at anthonye@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950.

The Market Theatre’s Kippies Fringe Programme Returns With Bold, Urgent Storytelling

The Market Theatre’s Kippies Fringe Programme Returns With Bold, Urgent Storytelling

The Market Theatre’s Kippies Fringe Programme Returns With Bold, Urgent Storytelling

Productions will start running from June through to December 2025, offering artistic vision that platforms storytelling and artistic expression that refuses to play it safe. Audiences will be treated to musical and theatrical performances, alongside the programming of cultural provocations with the power to shift the stage and spark change.

Thematically, the curation that The Art Cave offers will open a door to themes of youth resistance, musical legacy, queer pride, ancestral healing and personal reckoning. “These themes aren’t just relevant; they are urgent. We’re living in a time where theatre must do more than entertain—it must interrupt, heal, educate, and transform,” states Philangezwi Nxumalo

According to Tebogo Malapane, the shortlisting and final selection of shows followed a careful consideration of submissions across multiple performance genres, ensuring that the Kippies Fringe lives up to the vibrant multidisciplinary legacy of the space. The aim was to arrive at a bold, experimental, intimate and transformative programme that sits boldly in the 50-seater venue adjacent to The Market Theatre building.

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Malapane adds that curating the return of the Kippies Fringe is a surreal opportunity to prompt the future of storytelling. “As a creative deeply concerned with the evolution of theatre, I’m not here to replicate tradition. I’m here to stretch it, flip it, and reimagine it. Therefore, the Kippies Fringe is more than a stage, it’s a testing ground for the raw, the risky, and the radically new. It’s a platform where artists can be seen and heard before the world tells them who or how to be.”

For The Market Theatre Foundation, bringing back the Kippies Fringe is as much about creating opportunities for live-performance artists as it is about reactivating Kippies as a venue that has propelled many careers before. “Utilising Kippies as a fringe venue ensures professional support for up-and-coming performers and artists, while creating an alternative space to encounter new voices. Through this dual value proposition, The Market Theatre’s longstanding history as an iconic performance space lends itself to works that are still on the fringe, cultivating a fresh and dynamic layer of live-performance artists that could possibly feed into our main programming in the future,” says Artistic Director, Greg Homann.

Some of the performances lined up at Kippies include Jo’burg-based Mongezi Ntukwana’s award-winning satirical theatre piece, ‘The Hyena’s Tuckshop’, and Makhubalo Ikaneng’s ‘Halala Mr. Party’, through which the award-winning storyteller looks at how public joy is often used to mask deep pain.

Again, community-based storytelling will meet national visibility when KZN-based director and teacher, Masedi Manenye, travels to Jo’burg to present ‘Faces’, featuring a cast of University of Zululand alumni. The production emerges from the ‘Beyond the Curriculum’ initiative,  an innovative platform championing professional theatre grounded in rural realities.

Meanwhile, a rib-cracking comedy affair awaits, as  ‘The Jokeologist’ by Themba Nhlapo joins the Kippies Fringe. This show is a unique fusion of stand-up comedy, poetry, and live music, driven home with sharp wit, lyrical flow and soulful rhythms.

For more information and full line-up, visit www.markettheatre.co.za.

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The Market Theatre is a Division of The Market Theatre Foundation, an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

 For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

 For reduced price block bookings of 10 or more and school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development Specialist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at anthonye@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950.

THE BLACK CIRCUS OF THE REPUBLIC OF BANTU

The Black Circus of The Republic of Bantu

Internationally Acclaimed Performance Piece Aims to Heal Black Bodies and Spirits

The Market Theatre presents eight performances of ‘The Black Circus of the Republic of Bantu’, an explosive and destabilising installation-based performance artwork that aims towards healing generations of trauma inflicted on Black bodies. The internationally-travelled piece is performed by NYC Bessie Award winner, Albert Ibokwe Khoza, in collaboration with award-winning director, Princess Zinzi Mhlongo.

Its strictly limited season over weekends at The Market Theatre will run from 13 – 29 June 2025. This after selling out venues and performing to critical acclaim in major cities such as Amsterdam, Liverpool, New York and Barcelona, among others. It has been hosted by progressive festivals and organisations, including the Liverpool Biennial and the U.S-based Boom Arts, to mention a few.

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Locally, the work has been seen briefly in Cape Town, Soweto and Johannesburg

‘The Black Circus of the Republic of Bantu’ is an artistic display of the violent and shocking legacy of ethnological expositions such as human zoos and exhibitions in Western societies, popularised by the human curiosities movement between the late 19th century to mid-20th century. Through this movement, Black people – most notably Sarah Baartman – were uprooted from their homelands, commercially exploited and intrusively paraded for the white fetish. At an urgent pace, Khoza offers a visceral experience that thrusts the audience into re-examining this history – a history often left unspoken – and boldly opens portals for us to reclaim, reflect, and confront ourselves as a people.

The haunting and, at times, shocking confrontation goes further to lament the reduction of Blackness into a performance. The text makes the claim that Black bodies are institutionalised crime scenes that must be redeemed and cleansed. Piercingly, Khoza investigates the effect of this imperial and colonial gaze on Black people and its modern day continuation, emphasising the need for spiritual healing and reclaiming violated dignities.

This installation-based performance evokes the exploitation of Black power across industries, contending that this country was built on the unbreakable backs of Black people doing the work, and a White messiah shamelessly profiting from it. According to Khoza, Black creatives are still chained like slaves who need a White master in the form of international curators and funding organisations to penetrate local and global markets.

“With this secular performance,” Khoza explains, “I am questioning the freedom of the performer and whether it’s still caged, if the stage is the modern day human zoo. In paying tribute to the victims of the horrific legacy of slavery, I look back at the likes of Sarah Baartman who were coerced into unpaid public exhibitions and confront my own exploitation as a performer. Am I that different from them even now?” 

Allow Khoza to lead you into an atmosphere of collective healing, feel the shackles that hold you back fall off, and break into a sense of spiritual connection.

Tickets for ‘The Black Circus of the Republic of Bantu’ are available on Webtickets, selling at R120 up until 12 June. Thereafter, all tickets are R150.

Age restriction is 16+, with scenes of full frontal nudity and disturbing references.

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The Market Theatre is a Division of The Market Theatre Foundation, an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

 For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

 For reduced price block bookings of 10 or more and school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development Specialist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at anthonye@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950.

Hey Hillbrow! Come Out To Play—The Streets Are CallingThe Last Country

Hey Hillbrow! Come Out To Play—The Streets Are Calling

Hey Hillbrow! Come Out To Play—The Streets Are Calling

The Windybrow Arts Centre, a division of The Market Theatre Foundation, and its partners are proud to present the sixth iteration of its annual parade, Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala!

Fun, joy and creative energies are set to fill the inner-city of Jo’burg this Africa Month as Hey Hillbrow!  splashes the neighbourhood with colourful visuals and alters the soundscape with exciting frequencies. The parade, which cuts through Hillbrow and Doornfontein, takes place on 24 May 2025. It starts at 10am from The Windybrow Arts Centre, followed by a music concert featuring Thamsanqa Vuthela Band, Mozambique’s The Dizzy Brains and Styles Da Deejay of The Creators Room.

Launched in 2017, Hey Hillbrow! is a  celebration of the possibilities that public performance brings to public space—to spread energy, laughter, surprise and provocation, and to make visible the wonderful work that several organisations and individuals have continued to do in impacting inner-city communities and spaces. It is once again curated by Tamzyn Botha, alongside Daniel Buckland and The Windybrow Arts Centre.

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Hey Hillbrow! is a collaboration between The Windybrow Arts Centre and likeminded local youth organisations: Dlala Nje, Shade, Dlamini Foundation, Johannesburg Society for the Blind, Innovation of Excellence, Lefika La Phodiso, Fight with Insight and MES. Again, the parade is proud to have favourites, the Ezase Vaal Brass Band, returning to one of Jo’burg’s most anticipated  playdates for an unforgettable performance. The brass band will sonically lead and weave the crowd through worlds upon the parade.

Another highlight for this iteration is The Cirk, a descending razzle joining the parade from the sky. African Reclaimers Organisation continues to supply art and costumes created from waste, as well as waste reclaimer bag forms. These green creations make up the visual language of the entire parade, paying homage to the peripheral purveyors themselves and encouraging environmentally healthy practices. 

According to Gerard Bester, Head of The Windybrow Arts Centre, Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala! highlights the creative abilities of young people in the inner-city of Jo’burg, while pricking at the conscience of authorities to make the city a better place for all.

“The parade offers a moment of awe and wonderment for young people living in the sometimes tortured but culturally rich city of Johannesburg. It further celebrates the talents and creative vibrancy of young people, bringing joy and surprise to residents and visitors on the streets and balconies of Hillbrow. This year promises even more wonder and entanglement as we move through the streets as portals into the past, the future and the now,” Bester says.

The parade is more than just a mystical adventure. Beyond the thrill of the moment, it aims to spotlight the resilience, creativity, humanity and complexity of inner-city youth, while transforming the often high-risk area into a fun-filled playground. For once, their gaze at the weathered buildings around them sparkles with possibilities as they actively participate in reimagining the aesthetic of their neighbourhood.

Hey Hillbrow! Let’s Dlala! was inspired by the life of Jo’burg public art super-heroine, the late Lesley Perkes, who had dreams for the inner city place which others have continued to manifest. The organisers are therefore deeply grateful for the generous support from the following sponsors: Ekhaya CID, Badboys Security, Hillbrow Police, Assitej South Africa, CCBSA,  Joburg Photowalkers, the City of Johannesburg, Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, and our media partner Johannesburg in your Pocket.

 

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The Market Theatre Foundation is an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

 For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at the Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

 

Tutu Puoane: Wrapped In Rhythm at the Market Theatre

Tutu Puoane: Wrapped In Rhythm at the Market Theatre

Tutu Puoane: Wrapped In Rhythm at the Market Theatre 

With the blessing of acclaimed poet Lebogang Mashile, celebrated jazz vocalist and composer Tutu Puoane brought a fresh musical dimension to Mashile’s debut anthology, “In A Ribbon of Rhythm”. Carefully selecting a series of evocative poems, Puoane wove them into a rich, original repertoire, blending her signature fusion of African jazz, soul, and singer-songwriter influences.

The result is a deeply personal and emotionally resonant musical journey that breathes new life into Mashile’s words, transforming them into melodies that pulse with rhythm and meaning. Puoane’s interpretations honour the spirit of the original poetry, while infusing it with her unique artistry, creating a vibrant and soul-stirring experience. This project stands as a testament to the power of collaboration between poetry and music, offering audiences an immersive celebration of storytelling in sound.

 

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The Market Theatre Foundation mourns the passing of Zodwa Shongwe

The Market Theatre Foundation mourns the passing of Zodwa Shongwe

It is with the heaviest of hearts that The Market Theatre Foundation announces the passing of Zodwa Shongwe, who, until her final breath, was our exceptional Producer.

Our sincerest thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, colleagues and the artistic community on whose hearts she has left an indelible mark. 

Throughout her years with us, Zodwa set herself apart as an administrator par excellence, possessing the unique ability to balance artistry and industry. With her meticulous project management skills, she was the trusted engine of our artistic programming, ensuring compliance, monitoring progress and evaluating results.

Not one to seek the spotlight, she contributed immensely to keeping our lights on, executing her behind-the-scenes task with enthusiasm and faithfulness like the whole world was watching.

But we at The Market Theatre Foundation will remember Zodwa as more than just an outstanding producer and leading woman in the arts. To all of us, she will remain the warmest and kindest person to have known; an accessible friend and mentor with a sharp sense of humour.

With an unmissable presence that effortlessly created a safe space for all of us to be ourselves, she lived and breathed The Market Theatre Foundation’s core values.

May the soul of Zodwa Shongwe rest in the peace she afforded us all in her living days. And may her loved ones find healing and comfort in these unimaginably dark times.

ENDS.

The Market Theatre Foundation is an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at the Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

 

Breakfast with Mugabe

Breakfast with Mugabe

“Breakfast with Mugabe” is a National Arts Festival, The Market Theatre and Festival Enterprise Catalyst (FEC) co-production, in association with the Calvin Ratladi Foundation. This gripping psychological thriller is directed by Calvin Ratladi, 2025 Standard Bank Young Artist for Theatre.

It is set in the final years of Robert Mugabe’s rule in Zimbabwe. Inspired by real events, Fraser Grace’s award-winning play explores the troubled mind of the once-revered leader as he battles inner demons and political paranoia. Haunted by a malevolent spirit, Mugabe reluctantly seeks the help of a white psychiatrist, leading to a tense and dangerous power struggle. Following its South African premiere at the National Arts Festival, this riveting production comes to The Market Theatre, delving into themes of power, fear, and the ghosts of history. Directed by Calvin Ratladi, with a brilliant cast and searing dialogue, “Breakfast with Mugabe” offers a chilling glimpse into the psyche of a man clinging to control. Don’t miss this compelling drama that resonates far beyond Zimbabwe’s borders.

The Festival Enterprise Catalyst (FEC) project is a joint initiative by the National Arts Festival, Nasionale Afrikaanse Teater-inisiatief (NATi), Concerts SA, SAMRO, Woordfees, Aardklop, Suidoosterfees, KKNK and the Tribuo Fund with support from the Jobs Fund and contributing funding from Standard Bank South Africa.

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Phakamisa Dance Commission

Phakamisa Dance Commission

This is a National Arts Festival, The Market Theatre and JOMBA! Dance Festival (Centre for Creative Arts) co-production, with contributing funding from Standard Bank South Africa. It is choreographed by Asanda Ruda, 2025 Standard Bank Young Artist for Dance and recipient of the 2025 CCA JOMBA! and The Market Theatre Phakamisa Dance Commission.

Titled the Phakamisa Dance Commission – with reference to the isiZulu idea of lifting up and holding – this joint commission is an ongoing commitment to the illustrious JOMBAand The Market Theatre partnership – started in 2023 to grow and support South African dance. As an extension of JOMBA@ The Market, the second instalment of the innovative joint commission will be presented by this year’s recipient, Soweto-born Asanda Ruda. The commission aims to support and make space for innovative and provocative South African dance makers. For one week only, this is a chance for audiences to see the work of one of South Africa’s most exciting dance-makers.

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The Moon

The Moon Looks Delicious From Here

Hailed as a masterclass in writing and performance, Aldo Brincat’s ‘The Moon Looks Delicious From Here’ is coming to Jo’burg for the first time after its massive national and international success. The captivating semi-autobiographical story about immigration plays at The Market Theatre from 9 – 27 July 2025. This multi-award-winning piece of theatre is an action-packed exploration of identity, sexuality and heritage.

Told with brave vulnerability and theatrical flair, the play is Brincat’s personal account as a first-generation South African in his family. It is directed by Sjaka Septembir, with music by internationally renowned singer and songwriter, Bongeziwe Mabandla.

‘The Moon Looks Delicious From Here’ won a Standard Bank Silver Ovation Award at the 50th anniversary of the National Arts Festival (2024) and The Special Jury Award at the Bitesize Theatre Festival in London (2024).

In this solo performance, multidisciplinary artist, Brincat, plays an array of characters in and around a fragile young nuclear family – some foreign, some local – all of whom are finding or losing themselves in the ever-changing political landscape.

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Language, religion, ambition, sexuality and political leanings are brought into sharp focus as the show’s two lead characters (both played by Brincat) fight off ‘otherness’, while attempting to assert themselves into a volatile new country. As the effects of apartheid – and its homophobic policies – begin to reach a boiling point, family ties threaten to tear apart.

Brincat says ‘The Moon Looks Delicious From Here’ is a timely intersectional work with relevant themes for our current sociopolitical context. He explains, “This show is universal in its theme, particularly at this time when the intersectional knock-on effects of migrancy, sexuality, heritage and identity are brought increasingly into our consciousness. It makes us question what and who we think belongs, probing our conventional understanding of identity, family, ancestry and nationality.”

As Brincat courageously confronts his personal history, he generously holds space for audiences to revisit their own painful memories, heal their inner child and reconcile with the tragedies of their past.

Tickets for the show are available on Webtickets, with half-price specials on Wednesdays. Special discounts apply for groups of four or more and preview performances.

ENDS.

The Market Theatre is a Division of The Market Theatre Foundation, an agency of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture.

For media enquiries, please contact Bongiwe Potelwa (Publicist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at bongiwep@markettheatre.co.za or (011) 832 1641.

For reduced price block bookings of 10 or more and school groups, contact Anthony Ezeoke (Audience Development Specialist at The Market Theatre Foundation) at anthonye@markettheatre.co.za or 083 246 4950.

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FATHER & I

FATHER & I

Using personal stories, dance, song, and music, “Father & I” offers a warm and nuanced portrayal of South African fatherhood, fostering understanding.

This theatrical experience delves into the complexity, beauty, and imperfections of fatherly relationships. The production balances honest narratives, acknowledging the wounds of disappointment and abandonment. The work’s artistic treatment creates an empathetic space that encourages dialogue about healing the “father wound,” reconciling broken families, and inspiring a new generation of fathers to break destructive cycles.

This powerful and moving piece premiered in November 2024 and is now back at The Market Theatre for 10 performances only. It was developed collaboratively by The Windybrow Arts Centre’s Kwasha! Theatre Company, The Market Theatre, and Moving into Dance.

Directed by Greg Homann and choreographed by Sunnyboy Motau, Artistic Director of Moving into Dance, the work features original music composed by Bongile Lecoge-Zulu.

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