The Crossing

The Crossing is a play by Jonathan Khumbulani Nkala (1980-).

Originally known as The Journey.

Original text

A one-man play about a Zimbabwean refugee who came to Cape Town, based on Nkala’s account of his journey, and developed with the help of director Bo Petersen. Developed further, it became The Crossing in July 2008, and the production went on to have successful runs in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

The text was published as The Crossing by Junkets in 2009 (with The Bicycle Thief), as Issue 10 of Playscript series. Published in Cockroach: A Trilogy of Plays: The Bicycle Thief - Faith in Love - The Crossing by Junkets in 2014 as Issue 17 of Playscript Series. .

Performance history in South Africa

2006: First as The Journey by Nkala in The Garage Theatre, directed by Bo Petersen.

2007: Performed as The Journey in The Garage Theatre on 20 May,

2008: Widely performed this year, inter alia as The Journey at the Cape Town Holocaust Centre on 21 January and as The Crossing on 20 November (the latter as part of the South African Holocaust Federation's seminar on issues involving immigrants and xenophobia), at The Garage Theatre (21 September), Baxter Theatre Sanlam Studio (12 October), Tsiba University, Pinelands, Cape Town (23 October), The NewSpace Theatre (26 October), for the Human Sciences Research Council at Spier Estate, Stellenbosch, (27 November), The Green Dolphin Restaurant, Cape Town (8 December), eTV Studios Cape Town (10 DEecember) and Habonum Camp, Hermanus (18 December).