The inner-city housing crisis and the plight of the marginalized was in the spotlight in a powerful tale of humor and tragedy.
‘Kwa’Mnyamandawo’ is the seventh play by ‘Kwasha! Theatre Company’ which ran at Market Theatre from July 18-21, 2024.
It follows an investigative journalist named Penelope seeking to uncover the truth behind the housing crisis in Hillbrow through the help of a local tour guide. Her findings reveal a story of corruption and human neglect indicative of life in the inner city.
As one walked into the theatre, they were met by two walls with faded paint and exposed brick, one bearing the words ‘kwa’mnyamandawo’ or ‘the dark place’ spray-painted across it. Below, litter was scattered across the floor and a projector played real Eyewitness News coverage of a building fire in the background. This set the tone for what was expected to be a bleak telling of inner-city trauma.
Speaking to cast member Wenziyweyinkhosi Myeni, she says: “It’s about time that we start seeing stories we’ve never seen before. You may look at the buildings and the people that come from there and think their stories don’t need to be told, but those are the exact stories that need to be told!”
However, the hour that followed was anything but. As the lights dimmed and the projector cut, the audience’s silence was met by the harmonizing of the four-cast ensemble as the tour guide delivers a dispassionate sales pitch of Hillbrow. “Brothels and strip clubs make perfect for first dates!’” he proclaims to a snickering audience.
Dance and humour was a feature throughout Kwa’Mnyamandawo. Photo: Kabir Jugram
But the laughs would not end there. From the exaggeration of the swaggered walk of boys that don sporties (bucket hats) and studded earrings to the impersonation of rude yet clueless cops, the characters on display were caricatures of people we all know and see daily. Pair this with continuous choreography and melodies backing even the most mundane scene of daily routines of those in hijacked buildings, and daily life in the inner-city was splashed with colour.
Yet the consistent humour would not belittle the gravity of the play’s theme. As the play ends- after the police burn down an occupied hijacked building to conceal evidence of a syndicate – the lights dim, the actors turn to the projector and footage of real interviews with fire survivors plays, a reminder that the themes illustrated in the play are in fact a reality for many.
The play ends with real footage of a building fire being projected in the background. Photo: Kabir Jugram
Cast member Xhamla Samsam stated: “humour (is) the way of nursing the real wound that lies behind”. And that is exactly what this play is all about- using humour to make sense of trauma, the only way us South Africans know how. The result of this is a play that is complex yet digestible, relatable and unapologetic in its messaging.
Vuvu rating: 9/10
FEATURED IMAGE: The tour-guide and journalist engaged in argument. Photo: Kabir Jugram
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