Nomsa Sithe nails rogue Queen at the Kings stage
ALEXANDRA – Mkabayi commands a cunning stature of authority that can fool anybody into believing she had noble intentions.
Nomsa Sithe brought the house down at the Kings Theatre in Alex as she nailed her role as the astute but rogue AmaZulu Queen Mkabayi kaJama.
This was on stage at the return of the Zulu Queen Musical for a once-off sensational run at Kings Theatre on 12 June. The musical follows the story of an iconic African AmaZulu princess, Mkabayi kaJama, who played a significant role, both bad and good, in building the great AmaZulu monarchy.
Back on stage after its initial run at the Joburg Theatre in 2018, the musical features a variety of some of South Africa’s prolific stage performers alongside emerging talent from Alex.
ALSO READ: Princess Mkabayi’s shenanigans in full display on stage at the Kings Theatre in Alex
The production features the likes of Disney’s Australia Lion King’s Rafiki Dikeledi Litebele (in the role of Queen Nandi) Lion King’s Nala Asanda Deilihlazo (who plays the spirit of Shaka Zulu) and theatre veteran Sithe, who plays the role of the title character, Mkabayi.
The show tells a fascinating story of Africa’s first woman regent, Mkabayi, who served as the right hand to numerous AmaZulu kings including her own father King Jama kaNdaba, Senzangakhona, Shaka Zulu and Dingane.
A powerful figure in the AmaZulu history pages, Mkabayi was as influential as she was dangerous, and she is reported to have had King Shaka and Prince Mhlangana assassinated.
Mkabayi, with her vested interests to the throne, manipulated the kings with her shenanigans so as to open a window of opportunity for her to sit on the throne on a number of occasions, and so turned kingmaker.
She would pick and choose the kings she wanted on the throne for her own selfish interests. When the particular king stopped serving her interests, she would order their assassination so as to impose another puppet king of her choice.
Her rogue reign as kingmaker came to an end when she handpicked King Mpande for the throne. Soon after taking the throne, King Mpande banished the rogue princess cum-queen, regent-turned kingmaker.
Each time she took to the stage to plan her diabolical acts of either to throne or dethroning a reigning king, Mkabayi commanded a cunning stature of authority that would fool anybody into believing she had noble intentions with her desire to either instal or dethrone the king.
Starring a cast of 24 incredible performers, the Zulu Queen Musical is a feast of African song and dance, with original music also created by creator Lwandile Athandwa Jentile.
