At its heart, The Taking digs right into the heart of the matter: Zimbabwe’s endless tug-of-war over land. Through the eyes of Sixpence a storyteller caught between a rock and a hard place during state interrogation the play unspools a thread that stretches back centuries. It walks us through the bitter pill of colonial displacement, the sweat and blood of the liberation struggle, and the wild whirlwind of the land reform years.
By Trevor Mawaka
Raisedon Baya doesn’t beat around the bush or sugarcoat hard truths. He shows us how soil is far more than dirt under our fingernails it is our roots, our bread and butter, and our political battleground. Just as powerfully, the play tackles the elephant in the room: censorship. It throws down the gauntlet, asking who holds the pen when our history is written and what happens when artists are told to hold their tongues. Watching it today proves that time hasn’t blunted its edge; the questions it asked a decade ago are still knocking at our door.
Director Memory Kumbota doesn’t just put on a show; he breathes fire into it. Steering clear of heavy props and flashy set pieces, he strips the stage down to the bone, forcing us to keep our eyes glued to the actors.
The cast turns their very bodies into a canvas. Through pure physical grit, dance, and spoken word, they jump from one era to another in the blink of an eye. There is a electric pulse to the movement it catches fire early on and keeps the audience on the edge of their seats from start to finish.
The real magic of this performance is watching old hands work alongside fresh blood.
Zenzo Nyathi commands the room like second nature. Watching him perform is proof that age is just a number—his timing is sharp as a tack, his energy is boundless, and he holds the crowd in the palm of his hand just as he did years ago.
Not to be outdone, Lonesome Kudzai, Alex Marowa, Albert Tshuma, and Dalubuhle Nyoni match him stride for stride. They hit the ground running and hold their own, proving that the future of our theater is in safe hands.
The Taking is a tour de force a masterpiece that hits close to home. It makes you laugh, makes you squirm, and leaves you with plenty of food for thought. It stands as living proof that live theater is still our strongest mirror. More than ten years down the line, it hasn’t lost an ounce of its punch.
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