This theatre/ documentary drama production is based on survivor accounts, including Daniel Lolwana’s “Your bullets will not stop us: A recollection of the 1985 Queenstown massacre”. The play reconstructs the events inside Nonzwakazi Church when SAP members stormed a residents’ meeting, filled the hall with teargas, and opened fire.
At the centre is 61-year-old Lizo Ngcana, an ANC supporter who was dragged in bleeding, and fell dead at the pulpit. Through overlapping testimonies, sound, and movement, Nonzwakazi honours the 11-14 lives lost and the children, grandmothers, and neighbours caught in the crossfire. The title is both the name of the church where it happened and a Xhosa word meaning “place of compassion” - a stark contrast to the violence of that Sunday.
This is not just history. It’s a memory kept alive by Mlungisi. Raw, intimate, and unflinching, Nonzwakazi asks: who remembers, and who gets to speak?
Themes: Apartheid state violence, memory, community resistance, human dignity
Content warning: Depictions of gun violence, teargas, death, trauma
Production Credits
Producer/ Writer/ Director: Siyabulela Avela Qwalela
Arts Administrator/ Chairperson: Samkelo Mbali
Actors: Komani Drama Society
Stage Manager: Handry Mbangwa
About the Artists
Siyabulela Avela Qwalela | Writer/ Producer/ Director
Siyabulela Avela Qwalela is an arts activist, playwright, director, acting and voice coach, and drama coach at Walter Sisulu University, Komani campus, from Ezibeleni township in Komani, Eastern Cape.
He returned to Ezibeleni after graduating in Performing Arts from Tshwane University in 2008 and found local boys forming gangs. He started teaching English and isiXhosa literature for free at local high schools to pull kids away from gang activity.
He runs his own stage production company. Through it he’s penned, directed and staged 8 plays to date, and mentored thousands of young acting talents. One of his well-known plays is Wathinta Abafazi Wathinta Imbokodo, which was performed in schools and at the Guild Theatre in East London.
He serves as a drama coach at Walter Sisulu University, Komani campus. In that role he guides, coaches, and directs productions within the Komani Drama Society, helping students develop their performance and directing skills.
He was named a 2024 Daily Dispatch and Johnson’s Local Hero for his work keeping kids off the streets through arts. Some of the pupils he worked with who were gang members later became ambassadors for his programme.
His main goal is using theatre, Pantsula dance, and arts education to give young people in Komani and Mthatha an alternative to gangs, drugs, and crime. He also assisted schools with arts and technology subjects when OBE was introduced, since many teachers weren’t trained for it.
Samkelo Mbali | Drama Chairperson/ Project Administrator
Thespian, Vocalist, Graphic Designer & Arts Administrator
Samkelo Mbali is a Gqeberha-based creative and Walter Sisulu University alumnus who proudly centers his Xhosa heritage in his work. Performing under @thespiansam_sa on Instagram, he shares rehearsals, performances, and his life as a multi-disciplinary artist in the Eastern Cape.
His practice spans acting, vocals, graphic design, and administration. He is active in local theatre, with credits including Children in Monologues by Lungelwa “Lulu” Magqamfana at St Stephen’s Church, New Brighton, and Weave at the iPhulo Drama Festival. He is a core member of Ndiyinkwenkwezi Art Group and runs community projects like Theatre In The Shack, mentoring youth through monologues, song, and movement.
As a vocalist, he has performed at events including the Xhamela Cultural Festival 2024. He also works behind the scenes as a graphic designer and administrator for community.
- Venue: Victoria Theatre
- Location: Victoria Girls' High School
- Ticket price: ZAR 50.00
- Programme type: The Fringe
- Genre: Theatre
- Duration: 60 minutes
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Ages:
14+
