SPOTLIGHT: Tankiso Mamabolo on making Mama Morton her musical own in CHICAGO

Barbara Loots

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Award-winning actress, Tankiso Mamabolo, is getting ready to delight audiences in the much-anticipated return of CHICAGO - THE MUSICAL to Cape Town this August at the Artscape Theatre, courtesy of Showtime Management. She is an absolute powerhouse of a performer and arguably the perfect fit for the role of Matron "Mama" Morton with her exuberant personality, and abundance of talent as a storyteller and singer. When the opportunity presented itself to get her views on this legendary role we jumped at it for this latest SPOTLIGHT.

Photo by Newton Stanford.

Mamabolo has been drawn to the charismatic and clever Mama Morton since she first saw the movie as a young girl. She says the appeal of the role is perfectly reflected in the sexiness that is the song ‘When you're good to Mama'. Playing Mama Morton being a childhood dream, the audition process was rather nerve-wrecking: “All I could do was bring my own flare to the room and prepare the best I could.” The whole audition process was also made all the more enjoyable by the creative team who she experienced as “warm and encouraging, which made the experience a lot more relaxed”.

She has generally worked on self-created shows and productions with a clear South African viewpoint where a lot of development and fine-tuning happens on the rehearsal floor, with the audience seeing the product for the first time when staged. CHICAGO, being such a well-known internationally styled production, brings with it a rather different rehearsal mind-set, with audience expectation of a well-known and much-loved production weighing heavily. Mamabolo says this change of pace has been both frightening and freeing:

“The pressure can either make or break you, but I've chosen to lean into the freedom it allows. There's already a framework, and the production team have a very clear understanding of where they want the characters to go. This has allowed me to build Mama Morton in my own way, while being comfortable in knowing that there are specific guidelines and a strong support system.” 

Unpacking the legendary character is no small accomplishment. It has been theorised that the musical character of Mama Morton may have been inspired by one of the biggest Vaudeville stars, Russian born American actress, singer and comedian Sophie Tucker. As an unabashedly sexy performer, she has been described as “The Last of the Red-Hot Mamas”. Given that Tucker is even mentioned in the song ‘Roxie’ it seems like the legend may have some truth to it. If that is so, it makes for an interesting reflection on the history of the character. Apart from having a very suggestive, sensual style, Tucker’s performance history is not without controversy as it also involved elements of cultural appropriation: Her musical approach strongly influenced by African American minstrel, ragtime, and blues music. Since CHICAGO premiered in 1975, a long list of performers likely looked to “her” sound and style to bring Mama Morton to life, without interrogating the background and identity surrounding it.

However, it feels as if there has been a refreshing cultural shift with the character’s portrayal in recent years. Most notably perhaps with Queen Latifah playing Mama Morton in the 2002 movie version that Mamabolo so loves. Though the movie director, Rob Marshall, suggested that Queen Latifah look to Tucker for inspiration, she luckily did not know who he was referring to and gave Tucker no thought in the process. Queen Latifah then didn’t fall into the “legacy” trap, but opted to look to her grandmother’s persona and energy for inspiration for her Mama’s essence, giving the character an air of freedom. Perhaps even reclaiming the role with a sense of her own authenticity. Mamabolo is similarly taking care to give her Mama her own sense of self too.

Photo by Newton Stanford.

“I think connecting with legacy pieces of theatre such as CHICAGO as a black woman always means having to reconcile with some of the darker histories that come with these stories. It's important to remember what the state of the world was like back then and to approach such work with the reflection and consideration it deserves. For my portrayal of Mama Morton, I'm looking at a number of powerful black female performers such as Queen Latifah herself, as well as Audra McDonald and people like Nina Simone. I'm looking at their ability to project a quiet and intelligent strength, as well as their comfort with their own sexuality.”

Mama Morton is also not a flawless beacon of charisma and appeal; she has a murkier side that plays in the shadows of a corrupt prison system, and she unashamedly does so for her own profit, fueled by the idea of reciprocity above all. As Mamabolo established herself as an independent theatre maker with strong justice-centred views, one wonders whether she found it tricky to reconcile her sense of fairness with her character’s rather compromised views.

“Not at all”, she explains, “part of my work is to acknowledge that people, especially those who find themselves in the middle of systems that challenge their very existence learn to adapt and survive in ways that are not necessarily above board. Without excusing Mama Morton's role in a corrupt system, I don't judge it either. She is a survivor, and she is a businesswoman serving in a white and male world, and in her own little way she empowers some of the women under her care.” 

Mama Morton is then so much more than the corruption that she is extorting. The subtext of Mama Morton is that of a strong feminist. In addition to her confidence and assertiveness she is also somewhat ambiguous with her sexuality, which allows a wide range of identifying groups to claim Mama as their own, with drag performer Jinkx Monsoon even stepping into the role recently. Mama Morton's character is an opportunity to embrace female sexuality and body positivity in a way that is different to the expression reflected in the characters of Roxy and Velma. Because of the freeing power of self-expression that comes with Mama Morton, Mamabolo is excited to step into her empowering shoes. 

Photo by Newton Stanford.

“Roles like Mama Morton don't come as frequently as they should”, she reflects. “Women of my body type are usually type-cast as mother's, wives or caregivers. Here we have a woman who is incredibly smart, powerful, morally questionable and confident in her body, as well as in the role she plays. She is calculating and in charge of every single decision she makes. I'm excited to play this role because it has given me a chance to access those parts of myself. She is a business first and woman after.”

Though every character has their individual appeal, when looking at the play as a whole there aren't actually any sympathetic characters in CHICAGO. It's a theatrical razzle dazzle take on a rather cynical story. Yet, audiences are still drawn to this musical 50 years after it premiered. Yes, in part that is because it is unapologetic in its sexiness, but Mamabolo thinks there’s more to its timeless appeal than simply that.

“Watching shows where women are bad and happy to be bad is rare and it's exciting. Audiences don't usually root for morally questionable female characters, but here they are written and portrayed in a way that showcases their nuances, vulnerabilities, community and eventual triumph. I think secretly, everyone wants to be a sexy, singing and dancing baddy.”

That is true, everyone has a surreptitious inner baddy to some degree, and giving audiences what they want without them asking for it was maybe a clever misdirection by CHICAGO’s creators. They may have been feeding the needs of a secretly salacious audience, so that the focus did not fall on the fact that the show arguably gives a selective portrayal of the jazz culture in the roaring twenties. The musical has been criticised over the years for ignoring many of the cultural biases at play in a complex historical social setting.

Though, the counter argument has also been made, namely that it uses elements of jazz mixed with Vaudeville as societal critique or satire. Perhaps part of hiding the biases in plain sight is the fact that the entertainment scene’s appeal in the 1920s obscured closer reflection –the loathsome side hiding in plain sight, but dressed up in sequins. Given that present day entertainment is explicitly pushing to the fore the dark side of the industry to expose the manipulators who attempt to razzle-dazzle their way out of accountability, does this reality now give CHICAGO a more nuanced and fresh commentary perspective? 

“I think it does, and I also think the critique is valid”, says Mamabolo. “Many pieces of art that are set in the roaring 20s tend to romanticise that period while ignoring many of the societal issues that plagued the era. CHICAGO is about a very specific story, and I think the creators did the best they could to tell that story. Being a part of the production in 2025 brings a glaring critique to the role played by the media in sanitizing high status people involved in crime; it brings about questions of complicity, corruption in the criminal justice system, as well as how misogyny comes into play to either punish or reward women who appeal to it. While the production certainly omits some aspects of the roaring 20's, it's still relevant in its critiques of life back then, and life right now. After all, Roxie Hart saves herself by essentially becoming an influencer.” 

Keeping all this in mind, how can one not be enticed to go see the CHICAGO story of then through a current day lens, adding to it a fresh level of empowerment and appeal, with the bonus of toe-tapping numbers and memorable ear-worms. Seeing the talented Mamabolo step into the shoes of the larger-than-life Mama Morton is the cherry on top of that rather appealing razzle dazzle musical cake.

CHICAGO – THE MUSICAL is onstage at the Artscape Theatre from 27 August to 28 September 2025, before transferring to Montecasino’s Teatro, Johannesburg for a run from 3 October to 9 November 2025. Owing to strong adult themes and profanities, this production has a PG rating 10+. Parental guidance is advised. Tickets can be booked online through Ticketmaster and advance booking is recommended as tickets are selling out fast.