Zimbabwe genocide drama gets to historical core
EVEN in an age when audience involvement, either emotional or physical, is almost a given, this dramatisation of the Gukurahundi Genocide that took place in southern Zimbabwe between 1983 and 1987, when countless Matabele fell victim to Shona brutality, pushes the convention to the point of audience abuse.
Its graphic portrayal of multiple atrocities, each worse than the one preceding it, is not simply gratuitous, however: the stated intention of Uloyiko’s creators is to impress upon the ignorant the extent to which greed and the lust for power under Mugabe’s regime resulted in violation of human rights on an unprecedented scale. Outrage screams for justice – and even the most phlegmatic spectator cannot but feel outraged.
At the same time, Uloyiko suggests a cautionary tale for Zimbabwe’s southern neighbour as South Africa struggles to find a solution to the thorny issue of land restitution and accountability, the latter so often eluded by corrupt and wily leaders. Bruised spectators of this drama have much food for thought on quitting the theatre.
The TAAC is admirably suited to a work such as this, offering a generous space in which the cast can present action that ranges from intimate, harrowing domestic drama to large-scale military and political scenes. The chief prop is a soiled and tattered Zimbabwean flag centred in the backdrop, a mute symbol of a nation’s failed aspirations to liberty. For the rest, there is an earthy naturalness in the elements of the set used to evoke an essentially rural community: naked flames, smouldering aromatic herbs, sand and a maize-pestle create a powerful African ambience, promoted further by haunting song beautifully sung acapella.
Uloyiko begins innocuously enough with a lament by two battered survivors of the genocide of 30 years ago as Thomas (Mtwana) and Manina (Ntsini) narrate their unenviable destiny as refugees in South Africa with the plaintive singing of a Sangoma who attempts healing ceremonies in the background; then comes a history lesson as fascinating as it is dismal, starting with the advent of colonialism in 1893. It turns out that the country did not fare much better nearly a century later under Mugabe’s dictatorship… Then comes the unspeakable ghastliness of torture in the name of “cleansing Matabeleland”, suspected of collusion with South Africa. Most of the cast undertake dual roles with impressive versatility and Mtwana excels as Mugabe and Thomas; Thembakazi Platjie also shines in the roles of Sangoma and the vulnerable young mother, Mrs Khuzwayo.
For all its violence, Uloyiko is an enlightening play for anyone curious about the history of southern Africa, and not one to be viewed lightly.