Ekasi Lam
Ekasi Lam' – An Ode to Kwaito, Un-owed to Kwaito by Jefferson Tshabalala (19**-)
The original text
Ekasi Lam' – An Ode to Kwaito, Un-owed to Kwaito: A tale of Scamtho, Ringas and Kwaito is a South African play billed as a "kwaito anti-musical", performed predominantly in English and iscamtho (tsotsitaal). It is a play about kwaito music — its people, memory, fans and detractors, and its place in South Africa's musical and socio-political history — told through a Soweto high school where an idealistic principal and a former-pupil-turned-teacher prepare a group of learners for a school concert.
Written and directed by Jefferson Tshabalala ("J.Bobs") and produced by Kiri Pink Nob, the work uses Scamtho poetry to treat kwaito as a township storytelling genre and a lens on life in Johannesburg during and after apartheid. It grew out of Tshabalala's earlier production Location|Lekeyishene|Lokasie and engages with the book Born to Kwaito by Sihle Mthembu and Esinako Ndabeni. The play also exists as a published text, one of three published titles to Tshabalala's name, alongside Khongolose Khommanding Khommisars and Poet.O.Type; publisher and year not yet traced.* Jefferson Tshabalala was named the 2020 Standard Bank Young Artist for Theatre and received an ACT ImpACT Award in 2020.
Performance history in South Africa
The play premiered at the 2019 National Arts Festival, Makhanda.* The named characters include Dr Tlale (the principal), Ms Feni (the teacher) and the learners Boipelo, Liyana, Malibongwe and Khumo. The work was written and directed by Jefferson Tshabalala, with Bernett Mulungo as musical director and composer (also appearing as a pianist) and Shruthi Nair as set and costume designer. It was performed by an ensemble of six: Andisiwe Mpinda, Kopano Tshabalala, Gugu Dhlamini (as Liyana), Mathews Rantsoma, Lucky Ndlovu and Simpho Mathenjwa. Critical reception was mixed.
2019: Performed at The Centre for the Less Good Idea, Maboneng, in August as part of the For Once programme.
2019: Performed at the Market Theatre (Barney Simon), Johannesburg, until 8 September.
Sources
'Play "Ekasi Lam" pays tribute to kwaito & its impact on township life', Sunday Times, 1 September 2019.
'Jefferson Tshabalala's Ekasi Lam turns kwaito into a medium for critical debate', Rosebank Killarney Gazette, 7 October 2019.
'A tale of Scamtho, Ringas and Kwaito', Inner City Gazette, 16 August 2019.
'REVIEW: Ekasi Lam – An Ode to Kwaito, Un-Owed to Kwaito', CULTURE Review Magazine.
'August 2019 | For Once | Ekasi Lam, The Centre for the Less Good Idea.
Recording of the performance: https://youtu.be/7ZbDz7lgk-U?si=F3jwJjWTHLgmwSkB
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