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Baxter Theatre Centre
Three dynamic and compelling one person shows will be staged at the Baxter Masambe Theatre as part of the Baxter Zabalaza FINEST OF THE FEST, from 12 to 30 September 2023.
Lamentations, Oorwinnings Reis, and Tiro’s Toughloop Testimony are the three winning productions selected at the Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival earlier this year and will be staged over three weeks, from 12 to 30 September 2023, at the Baxter Masambe Theatre, at 7pm, with matinees at 11.30am and 2pm.
Following their sold-out runs at the 13th annual Baxter Zabalaza Theatre Festival in March, where the quality and standard of the works produced by the participants were so exceptional, the team decided to create the first-ever selection of three one person shows for the festival. The plays were selected for their powerful themes, writing, performances, directing and overall presentation.
The Baxter Zabalaza FINEST OF THE FEST starts with Lamentations, performed by Abongile Ntshuca, written by Rhorho Zolani Mnyamana, and directed by Samkelo Zihlangu. The play explores the journey of a young girl, Nobuhle, who is kidnapped and forced into an arranged marriage. Her cries are dismissed by both her birth family and the one she’s about to enter, involuntarily. Her childhood is lost forever when she is expected to produce offspring, and with her life changing so drastically overnight, she has no option but to cry. Performed in English and IsiXhosa, it runs from 12 to 16 September at 7pm, with matinee performances at 11.30am on 12 September and 2pm on 16 September.
Oorwinnings Reis is a show that says, "Life is a journey one takes alone." However, there is an experience between sunrise and sunset, the complete revolution of the earth around the sun, and the half-to-full moon. In this lightning-fast play, 23-year-old Tina Naidoo tells of her triumph, as well as her life's journey. Like many others who come from religious backgrounds, Tina's life was not easy. For this happy young lady, it was not a fairy tale to make the big move from a small farm town to the Mother City. A sad journey to victory, as long as she can live out her passion. Performed in Afrikaans, the play is written, directed and performed by Patwill Titus. It runs from 19 to 23 September at 7pm, with matinee performances at 11.30am on 19 and 21 September and 2pm on 23 September.
Tiro’s Toughloop Testimony is written and performed by Ayanda Nobakabona, directed by Mfundo Zono. The play is performed in English and runs from 26 to 30 September at 7pm, with a matinee performance at 2pm on 30 September. In the face of colonial threat many fearless people in Africa were ready to give their lives for the resistance. This one-hander zooms in on the life of one of them, Onkgopotse Tiro. He became the first across-the-border victim of the malicious Apartheid regime. Moving from documentary to poetry and from history to the present, Tiro’s contribution to the Black Consciousness Movement is remembered in a touching and enlightening way.
The Baxter Zabalaza FINEST OF THE FEST season runs for three weeks only and is made possible by the generous support of the HCI Foundation, the City of Cape Town, the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust, and Heineken.
Tickets are R80 and R60 for students and group block bookings of 10 or more. Booking is through Webtickets online at www.webtickets.co.za/baxtertheatre or at Pick n Pay stores. For discounted block or schools’ bookings, charities or fundraisers, contact Carmen Kearns on email carmen.kearns@uct.ac.za or call 021 680 3993 OR Nontsikeleko Maboza on email nontsikelelo.maboza@uct.ac.za or call 021 680 3984.