A Mthatha drama group is one of several from around the Eastern Cape performing at the Iphulo Performing Arts Festival in Nelson Mandela Bay.
The Mshengu Theatre Com-pany, led by actress and playwright Nondumiso Zweni, will be staging a production titled Olivia Twisted.
The annual drama festival will be featuring plays from all eight districts of the province. The festival will run for a week from March 26 to 31.
Zweni said their play was about a girl growing up as an orphan, and it explored how the vulnerable repeatedly end up as victims.
“When an orphan goes to live with a relative, it’s always sunny and roses when the foster care grant is being paid up, but once that ends, so does the love, and orphans often find themselves being mistreated,” said Zweni.
She said Olivia Twisted also shone a light on how communities no longer cared about children who were not theirs.
“Even though Olivia runs away, she finds no help out there and her suffering continues. She is also discriminated against because her father is a Pakistani national and society shuns her for that,” she said.
Zweni said she drew from a personal experience and wrote the story years ago.
“We had to audition for Iphulo and I believe we were selected for the festival because many productions tend to be political, forgetting the real stories.
“Ours tells a story that many people know,” said Zweni.
She started the production company to provide young people with a platform to nurture their artistic talents.
“Some rural children have never even seen a theatre, so endeavours like this give them that exposure, while at the same time showing them it can be done,” she said. — ziphon@dispatch.co.za
Play speaks to broken society
The Mshengu Theatre Com-pany, led by actress and playwright Nondumiso Zweni, will be staging a production titled Olivia Twisted.
The annual drama festival will be featuring plays from all eight districts of the province. The festival will run for a week from March 26 to 31.
Zweni said their play was about a girl growing up as an orphan, and it explored how the vulnerable repeatedly end up as victims.
“When an orphan goes to live with a relative, it’s always sunny and roses when the foster care grant is being paid up, but once that ends, so does the love, and orphans often find themselves being mistreated,” said Zweni.
She said Olivia Twisted also shone a light on how communities no longer cared about children who were not theirs.
“Even though Olivia runs away, she finds no help out there and her suffering continues. She is also discriminated against because her father is a Pakistani national and society shuns her for that,” she said.
Zweni said she drew from a personal experience and wrote the story years ago.
“We had to audition for Iphulo and I believe we were selected for the festival because many productions tend to be political, forgetting the real stories.
“Ours tells a story that many people know,” said Zweni.
She started the production company to provide young people with a platform to nurture their artistic talents.
“Some rural children have never even seen a theatre, so endeavours like this give them that exposure, while at the same time showing them it can be done,” she said. — ziphon@dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos