A conversation with playwright Zodwa Nyoni

Journal article

Kasule, S. 2025. A conversation with playwright Zodwa Nyoni. African Performance Review. 15 (2), pp. 1-15.
AuthorsKasule, S.
Abstract

Zodwa Nyoni the writer of Tears are not Meant to Stay Inside, the first African Opera to be written and staged in the United Kingdom. The interview was conducted virtually on Microsoft Teams on 26 February 2025. My discussion with Zodwa Nyoni lasted for one hour and ranged widely across her writing life in theatre and working in the creative industry, specifically focusing on her opera, Tears are Not Meant to Stay Inside. What strikes me now, on reading the transcription of the interview is Nyoni’s candour regarding the culturally and linguistically diverse creative artists, independence of mind, and the degree to which the personal, identity and culture are interlinked in her work.

KeywordsAfrican opera; culturally and linguistically diverse creatives; identity; diaspora
Year2025
JournalAfrican Performance Review
Journal citation15 (2), pp. 1-15
PublisherAfrican Theatre Association
ISSN1753-5964
Web address (URL)https://apr.african-theatre.org/index.php/apr
Accepted author manuscript
License
File Access Level
Controlled
Output statusIn press
Publication dates
OnlineAug 2025
Publication process dates
AcceptedApr 2025
Deposited01 Jul 2025
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