''uMabatha'' is a 1970

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

written by

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

n playwright Welcome Msomi. It is an adaptation of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's '' Macbeth'' set in the Zulu Kingdom during the early 19th century, and details how Mabatha overthrows Dangane. Described as Msomi's "most famous" work, ''uMabatha'' was written when Msomi was a student at the

University of Natal The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu-N ...

; it was first performed at the University's open-air theater in 1971. In 1972, it was performed at the Royal Shakespeare Company's

Aldwych Theatre The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels. History Origins The theatre was constructed in th ...

as part of that year's World Theatre Season, and has subsequently been performed in Italy, Scotland, Zimbabwe, and throughout America, including a "very successful off-Broadway season in 1978".

Reception

Peter Ustinov said that, before seeing ''uMabatha'', he did not truly understand ''Macbeth'', while

Gregory Doran Gregory Doran (born 24 November 1958) is an English director known for his Shakespearean work. ''The Sunday Times'' called him 'one of the great Shakespearians of his generation'. Doran was artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RS ...

stated that the 1995 Johannesburg production of ''uMabatha'' was "the best production of acbeth he had ever seen.''Woza Shakespeare: Titus Andronicus in South Africa'', by

and

Antony Sher Sir Antony Sher (14 June 1949 – 2 December 2021) was a British actor, writer and theatre director of South African origin. A two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner and a four-time nominee, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1982 a ...

; published 1996 by Bloomsbury Publishing In response to the 1995 Johannesburg production, Nelson Mandela told Msomi that "(t)he similarities between Shakespeare's Macbeth and our own

Shaka Shaka kaSenzangakhona ( – 22 September 1828), also known as Shaka Zulu () and Sigidi kaSenzangakhona, was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1816 to 1828. One of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu, he ordered wide-reaching reforms that ...

become a glaring reminder that the world is, philosophically, a very small place."

References

External links

Shakespeare's Globe Research Bulletin, issue #25 (May 2002): UMABATHAuMabatha: Global and Local
by Laurence Wright {{DEFAULTSORT:Umabatha Plays and musicals based on Macbeth Zulu literature 1970 plays South African plays Plays set in South Africa Plays set in the 19th century