04/03/2026
For the last few weeks, I have had the immense privilege to witness the unfolding of a new work 'Isitha Sabantu'. The play is inspired by Henrik Ibsen's timeles play ‘An Enemy of the People’ as well as the courage and legacy of assassinated environmental defender Mam Fikile Ntshangase.
Opening at the Market Theatre this Sunday, the production features a cast of twelve, led by by Mpume Mthombeni, Tony Miyambo, Billy Langa, Minenhle Skhosana, Zesuliwe Hadebe and Sabelo Sekgoto.
Set in a rural Zululand village known as Hlanzeka, the school headmistress, Mam Nomsa, conducts the church choir whose hymns drift across the hills and intermingle with those sung by women out in the fields. However the bonds that knit the community begin to fray when residents discover that their lives and homes lie directly in the path of a planned new coal mine.
Soon the growl of machines reverberates across the same valley, poisoning the hearts and minds of the people of Hlanzeka along with the water and land. Mam Nomsa leads the charge against the land-hungry mine and fosters resistance to defend her home and people.
Churches, school halls, fields and kitchens become her battle grounds as she attempts to unite her community against the destructive “progress” that wears an all too familiar face.
The production features incredible music, song and puppets as well as a new script that will move you to tears and then, hopefully, stir you into action against the scourge of corrupt mining practice that threatens our country and our Earth!
Empatheatre will also host three Citizen Assemblies during the run of 'Isitha Sabantu'. The Assemblies, on the mornings of Monday 9, Friday 13 and Monday 16 March from 9am to 12.30pm, will allow time to collectively reflect on the play’s themes, to share testimonies, and to engage in public dialogue around the lived realities of environmental defenders.
Booking for the play and Citizen Assemblies is through Webtickets.
Do not miss!
