Scores gathered at the SA State Theatre‘s Opera Theatre to pay tribute to mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela in song.
The Friday event was part of many memorial services and tribute concerts organised around Gauteng to commemorate the life of the struggle icon.
Concert-goer Nkosi Phiko of Tembisa said: “I will not be able to make it to the funeral on Saturday, but I will use this opportunity to pay tribute to Mama and also get my spirit revived through music.”
SA State Theatre spokesperson Thakgatso Setseta said it was befitting for the theatre to host the event.
“We hosted mama Winnie here recently when she came to watch a show and her presence was very much appreciated,” he said.
Famous artists like Rebecca Malope, Oliver Mtukudzi, and Zahara enchanted the crowd, while poets Napo Mashiane and Mzwakhe Mbuli mesmerised them with rhyme and rhythm.
“Her memory was honoured through song, dance, poetry, and storytelling. Mama Winnie was an avid supporter of the arts and always had time to engage with young artists and encourage them to fight,” Setetsa said.
Theatre CEO Dr. Sibongiseni Mkhize said mama Winnie was a loyal supporter of the theatre.
“Especially its artistic works that featured South African talent and told stories of the pre- and post-apartheid South Africa. Her last visit was in August 2017, when she came to watch Marikana – The Musical by the multi-award-winning playwright and artistic director Aubrey Sekhabi. Before that, she attended a dedicated performance of the Broadway musical Sarafina by the legendary, multi-award-winning playwright Mbongeni Ngema.”
He said the theatre would continue to honour her life and memory by staging theatrical works that question the status quo and critically engage with the complex layers and internal contradictions of the new South Africa.
“Her spirit of courage will forever inspire us. May her soul rest in peace.”
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