The Great Yes, The Great No

William Kentridge works across mediums of drawing, writing, film, performance, music, theatre and collaborative practices, to create works of art that are grounded in politics, science, literature and history, always maintaining a space for contradiction and uncertainty. His work has been seen in museums and galleries around the world since the 1990s, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Albertina Museum in Vienna, Musée du Louvre in Paris, Louisiana Museum in Copenhagen, the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid, the Kunstmuseum in Basel and the Royal Academy of Arts in London. His work can be found in the collections of art museums and institutions across the globe. Kentridge has directed Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Shostakovich’s The Nose, and Alban Berg’s operas Lulu and Wozzeck, for opera houses including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, La Scala in Milan, English National Opera in London, Opera de Lyon, Amsterdam Opera, the Sydney Opera House and the Salzburg Festival. His original works for stage combine performance, projections, shadow play, voice and music, and include the Refusal of Time, The Head & the Load, and Waiting for the Sibyl. In 2016 Kentridge founded the Centre for the Less Good Idea in Johannesburg: a space for responsive thinking and making through experimental, collaborative and cross-disciplinary arts practices. The Centre hosts an ongoing programme of workshops, public performances and mentorship activities. He is the recipient of honorary doctorates from several universities including Yale, Columbia and the University of London. Prizes include the Kyoto Prize (2010), the Princesa de Asturias Award (2017), the Praemium Imperiale Prize (2019), and an Olivier award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera in 2023.

Exceptional vocalist, choreographer, composer, theater maker, dancer and educator Nhlanhla Mahlangu is a graduate of Dance Teaching at Moving into Dance, Mophatong. Born in Pholapark Squatter Camp in Apartheid South Africa in the late 1970s, Mahlangu started school during the national state of emergency in the 1980s and witnessed first hand the conflicts between the African National Congress, Inkatha Freedom Party and The ‘Third Force’ of the 1990s. Mahlangu can only be described as a generous interdisciplinary collaborator who excels at conjuring original, complex and contemporary work rooted in traditional forms. Mahlangu is celebrated for his embodiment of Isicathamiya, a cappella-type musical form combining vocals and movement. Mahlangu uses this practice as a way to process the history of South Africa, particularly the plight of migrant workers. Nhlanhla Mahlangu’s prolific practice is one of interrogation, articulation, development and research. He has gained exceptional ground through his pivotal collaborations with luminaries the caliber of William Kentridge (The Head & the Load, Sibyl, Ursonate, The Centre for the Less Good Idea), Robyn Orlin, Richard Cock, Gregory Vuyani Maqoma, Sylvia Glasser, as well as his choral music and music making approaches with his Hlabelela Ensemble and Song and Dance Works. Mahlangu is celebrated with the Naledi award winner for Best Choreographer, Promax Africa Award 2021 for Best Title Sequence in The Estate, New York Theatre and Dance Awards - The Bessies 2020 Best Composition and Sound Design, recognition by the The Danish Arts Foundation's Committee for Performing Arts Project Funding in 2019 for choreography, casting and co-directing, Special Price Winner of the Reumert Award 2020 in Denmark, among others. His latest achievements includes being one of the directors - Body Orchestrator of Shaka Ilembe, an award winning and most prominent 12-part TV series premiered in South Africa in 2023.

Phala is a multi-award-winning 'storiyer' in the form of a theatre-maker and director whose work has won awards in South Africa, USA, Czech Republic and Australia. He is the Co-Director of Noma Yini; a South African arts collective in the business of ‘storying’ – the multiple ways of coming into, portraying, forming, building, making, and performing stories. From 2019 to 2023, he was the Animateur at The Centre for the Less Good Idea, an interdisciplinary incubator space for the arts, based in Maboneng, Johannesburg. He holds a Masters in Dramatic Arts from Wits University. His works champion emotional and psychologically-stimulating storying as a uniquely African aesthetic. His focus and interest are on methodologies of making and creating work in ways that collapse and disrupt conventional norms.

Soweto-born Tlale Makhene is a sought-after percussionist, composer and collaborator who draws from traditional, world, and jazz music. Tlale has performed locally and internationally, collaborating and working with artists ranging from Miriam Makeba to Corinne Bailey Rae and Johnny Clegg to Pharaoh Sanders. His collaboration with William Kentridge began seven years ago with Refuse The Hour and continues through his work with Kentridge’s Centre for the Less Good Idea. Tlale has released two original albums: Ascension of the Enlightened (2004), which won the highest accolade in South African music awards for Best Contemporary Jazz Album, and Swazi Gold (2017). In 2020, Makhene was awarded the BVSM Award for best percussionist. He also wrote music for Dada Masilo’s Sacrifice. Other albums under his name are SG2.0 (2020 SAMA Awards Nominee for Best Adult Contemporary Jazz) and Busuku Nemini.

Mwenya B. Kabwe is a Zambian-born maker of theatre and performance, facilitator of creative processes, a performer, writer, arts educator, and scholar. She holds a PhD from The Centre for Theatre Dance & Performance Studies (CTDPS) at the University of Cape Town (UCT) where she is currently Senior Lecturer and Head of the Theatre Section. Her creative practice and research is focused on contemporary African theatre and performance, migration, immersive and site-specific performance work, live art, collaborative and interdisciplinary art making and re-imagining African futures. She has lectured at the UCT Drama Department, Wits School of Arts division of Theatre & Performance, and the Market Theatre Laboratory. She is a co-curator of the Unrehearsed Futures conversation series and a curatorial partner in the OpenScape Network. Her current projects include working with William Kentridge as the Dramaturg for his latest theatrical production, The Great Yes, The Great No, and incubating several collaborative interdisciplinary experiments through The Centre for the Less Good Idea in Johannesburg.

Greta Goiris studied costume design in Antwerp and set design in Barcelona in the early 1990s. Greta collaborated with several directors amongst others Josse Depauw, Karin Beyer, Pierre Audi, Ivo Van Hove, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. From 2001 onwards she collaborated as costume designer with Johan Simons on numerous (music-)theatre productions and operas; amongst others, Sentimenti, Das Leben ein Traum, die Vergessene Strasse (all for the Ruhrtriennale); Die Perser (Münchner Kammerspiele), die Judin von Toledo, King Lear, Ödipus Herrscher (Bochum Schauspielhaus), Radetzky Mars, Richard 2, Geschichten aus dem Wiener Wald, Damonen, Dantons Tod (Burgtheater Wien); Fidelio (Opera de la Bastille-2008), Herzog Blaubarts Burg (Salzburger Festspiele-2008), Alceste (Ruhrtriennale-2016), Don Carlos (Opera-Ballet Vlaanderen- 2019), Alcestis (Epidaurus Festival-2022). Die Zauberflöte (La Monnaie-2005) would be the start of a long collaboration with William Kentridge. Operas The Nose (MetropolitanOpera New York-2010), Lulu (DNO/the MET/ENO-2015), Wozzeck (Salzburger Festspiele/The Met/Sydney OperaHouse-2017), and music-theatre productions Refuse the hour (Holland Festival/ Festival d’Avignon), Refusal of time (Documenta Kassel), Winterreise (Wiener Festwochen), More sweetly play the danse (Eye-museum Amsterdam), O sentimental Machine (Istanbul Biennal), The Head and the Load (Tate Modern/ Ruhrtriennale/ Park Avenue Armory-2018),Waiting for the Sibyl (Theatro dell Opera di Roma-2019) all follow. Greta designed costumes and puppets for the film Oh To Believe In Another World (Luzerner Sinfonieorchester 2023).

Sabine Theunissen studied architecture at La Cambre in Brussels before embarking on a career marked by rich collaborations. For 17 years, she served as an internal decor assistant at the Royal Theater of La Monnaie in Brussels, following a year at the technical office of La Scala in Milan. Her creative journey took a significant turn in 2003 when she met William Kentridge, sparking a prolific partnership. Their collaboration commenced with Magic Flute at the Royal Theater of La Monnaie in 2005, leading to a series of acclaimed opera productions and art installations. Notable works include The Nose (Metropolitan Opera, NYC, 2010), Refuse the Hour (Johannesburg, 2012), Winterreise (Vienna Festival, 2014), Wozzeck (Salzburg Festival, 2017), The Head and the Load (Tate Modern, London, 2018), and the film Oh To Believe in Another World (Luzerner Sinfonieorchester). Her collaboration with William Kentridge extends beyond opera productions to encompass over 15 exhibition designs worldwide. Among these, notable works include his extensive retrospective at the Royal Academy of London and Taipei (2022-2024) and the current exhibition Je n'attends plus presented by the Luma foundation in Arles. In addition to her work with Kentridge, Sabine has lent her artistic vision to a range of projects. Collaborations with directors and choreographers include sets for Hélène Theunissen's La Dispute (2000), Aurore Fattier's Bug and Othello, Michèle Noiret's Hors Champs (2015), and Lillo Baur's Ariane and Barbe Bleue (Opera de Dijon, 2012). Notably, Sabine designed sets for Rufus Wainwright's Prima Donna (Kungliga Operan, Stockholm, 2020) and last Christmas windows for Hermès rue de Sèvres (Paris). In 2021, Sabine directed the short film WHITE BOX JACKET, supported by the Film LAB of the French community in Belgium, set to premiere in Stockholm next November. Based in Brussels, Sabine is frequently lecturing and mentoring at institutions such as Stockholm University, La Cambre, and the Centre for the Less Good Idea in Johannesburg. In 2016, she established the Squatelier, a studio that fosters creativity and offers internship opportunities for students of art, architecture, and interior design. Her dedication to mentoring and the art of scenography shines through in her ongoing commitment to guiding the next generation of creatives.This summer, Sabine will direct Mozart's Entfuhrung aus dem Serail, scheduled for its premiere in Portugal as part of the 10th anniversary celebration of FIMM in Marvão.

After completing an apprenticeship of photography in Munich, Urs Schönebaum worked with Max Keller as a part of the lighting department of Münchner Kammerspiele. In 1998 he started being assistant stage director for productions at Grand Theatre de Genève, Lincoln Center New York and Münchner Kammerspiele until in 2000 he took up work as a lighting designer for opera, theater, dance, art installations and performances. He participated in over 200 productions at major theaters with stage directors like Pierre Audi, Claus Guth, Laurent Pelly, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Damien Jalet, Sacha Waltz, Thomas Ostermeier, La Fura dels Baus, Michael Haneke and was a long-time collaborator of Robert Wilson. His work also includes lighting designs for art projects with Vanessa Beecroft, Anselm Kiefer, Dan Graham, Taryn Simon, Soundwalk Collective, William Kentridge and Marina Abramović. Since 2012 he is working also as a set designer and stage director. He designed and directed the operas Jetzt, What Next? and Happy Happy for the Opera National de Montpellier. He directed and designed the 2nd Act of the Walküre Project at Staatsoper Stuttgart. His set and lighting designs include Bomarzo at Teatro Real, Aus Licht at Holland Festival, Apocalypse Arabe at Festival d’Aix en Provence, Klangwolke 22 in Linz, Bastarda! at La Monnaie Brusseles and La Regenta at the Matadero in Madrid.

Elena Gui studied literature and theatre and started her career as assistant director and assistant of production for theatre and experimental cinema. Since 2013 she has specialized in lighting. Among the theatre, danse and opera companies she has worked for are Emilio Calcagno, La Fura Dels Baus, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Damien Jalet and Stefania Tansini. In the field of experimental cinema, she worked with American artist Peter Miller and filmmakers collective Flatform.

Žana Marović (born in Sarajevo, 1973) is a film editor based in Johannesburg, and a member of the South African Guild of Editors. She studied science before switching to video editing. In South Africa, Marović started her career as an assistant editor and colorist working with the wildlife filmmakers and National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Dereck and Beverly Joubert on their documentary projects. Since 2011, she became part of the creative team working with William Kentridge as an assistant editor, then editor, compositor and projection designer on his theatre productions and video installations, including The Refusal of Time; O Sentimental Machine; Notes Towards a Model Opera; Second Hand Reading; operas Lulu and Wozzeck; the internationally acclaimed multi-media work The Head & the Load; chamber opera Waiting for the Sibyl commissioned by the Teatro Dell’Opera di Roma; Oh To Believe in Another World, a film commissioned by Lucerne Symphony Orchestra to accompany Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony; Self-Portrait as a Coffee Pot, the 9-part episodic series focused on Kentridge’s studio practice, premiering at Venice in April 2024; and the most recent The Great Yes, The Great No, part play, part oratorio, part chamber opera premiering at Luma Foundation, Arles in July 2024.

Janus Fouché is a South African digital artist, working in multimedia projects ranging from immersive interactive sound installations, virtual reality & animation, to self-organizing biological systems. He focuses on cybernetics, the digital space and AI as a parallel, abstract, but increasingly present reality, with its own philosophy and aesthetics to be constructed, explored, and interrogated. Fragments of both digital and physical worlds are pulled into one-another to create new, unexpected relationships. Algorithms that describe artificial life in line drawings, collages of film and animation meet motion captured puppets and mechanical anthropomorphisms. He is most active as a collaborator, working with contemporary artists, composers, performers, and filmmakers: William Kentridge, Philip Miller, Catherine Meyburgh, Žana Marović, Sabine Theunissen, Joslyn Barnes, Walter Murch, Marcus Neustetter, Jane Taylor, Mikhael Subotzky, Jason Mitcham, Jonas Lundquist, Gavan Eckhart, Nhlanhla Mahlangu, João Orecchia, Julia Burnham, Library Special Projects [LSP], Blessing Ngobeni, Deborah Bell. While completing his postgraduate degree (hons) in Multimedia, he began an internship at the William Kentridge studio (2011), and in an ongoing subsequent working relationship has taken on editorial roles in several international Kentridge projects and performances. (most notably Oh To Believe in Another World, City Deep, Kaboom!, The Head & The Load, More Sweetly Play the Dance, and Right Into Her Arms). He is a frequent collaborator at The Centre For The Less Good Idea in Johannesburg.

Joshua Trappler (born in South Africa, 1990) is a film editor and director based in Johannesburg, and a member of the South African Guild of Editors. Joshua started his career working on SuzelleDIY, a breakthrough comedy web-series which aired on Comedy Central. The show won the award for Best Editing in a TV Comedy Series at the 2018 South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs). He was an editor on Tali's Wedding Diary, the mockumentary TV series that was the first original Showmax production in South Africa. It won five awards at the 2019 SAFTAs including Best Editing in a Comedy TV Series. Joshua then wrote, directed, and edited the original feature documentary Rhythm & Smoke, which is a deep dive into a unique aspect of South African music and motor vehicle culture. This documentary aired on Showmax and received two nominations at the Bokeh International Film Festival 2021 for Best Directing as well as for Best Documentary. Since 2020, Joshua has worked as a regular collaborator with William Kentridge as an editor and video operator on installations and performances at the Wits Art Museum, the Royal Academy of Arts, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, the Centre for the Less Good Idea, and for the series of ‘Slade Lectures’ at the University of Oxford. He formed an integral part of the creative team on Oh to Believe in Another World, a film commissioned by Lucerne Symphony Orchestra to accompany Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony; Self-Portrait as a Coffee-Pot, the 9-part episodic series focused on Kentridge’s studio practice, premiering at Venice in April 2024; and the most recently The Great Yes, The Great No, part play, part oratorio, part chamber opera premiering at Luma Foundation, Arles in July 2024.

Duško Marović, SASC (born Belgrade, 1969) is a cinematographer based in Johannesburg. Since 2011, Marović has been working as a Director of Photography with William Kentridge on his theatre productions, operas and art installations, including The Refusal of Time, More Sweetly Play the Dance, Notes Towards a Model Opera, O Sentimental Machine, opera’s Lulu, Wozzeck, the acclaimed multi-media work, The Head and the Load which premiered at Tate Modern, London, July 2018, chamber opera Waiting for the Sibyl commissioned by the Teatro Dell’Opera di Roma, Oh To Believe in Another World, a film commissioned by Lucerne Symphony Orchestra to accompany Shostakovich 10th Symphony; Self portrait as a Coffee Pot, the 9 part episodic series focused on Kentridge’s studio practice, premiering at Venice in April 2024, and the most recent The Great Yes and The Great No, part play, part oratorio, part chamber opera premiering at Luma Foundation in Arles, France in July 2024.

Kim Gunning was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. She began her theater career in 1984 as a stage manager, eventually specializing in opera stage management. During this time, she worked extensively in South Africa, the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia. In 1998 she began working with the Handspring Puppet Company as stage manager on their productions of Il Ritorno d’Ulisse and UBU and the Truth Commission. William Kentridge was the stage director for both productions. In 2000 Kim moved to Chicago, USA, where she worked as the production stage manager for Chicago Opera Theater. When Mr. Kentridge was commissioned to direct a new version of Die Zauberflöte for Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels in 2004, he asked Kim to join his creative team as video controller. Since then she has been part of his production team, with credits including Zauberflöte, Refuse the Hour, The Nose, Winterreise, Lulu, Wozzeck, The Head and the Load, Sibyl, Oh To Believe in Another World and, most recently, The Great Yes, The Great No.

Tony is a BA (Dramatic Arts) Graduate from the University of the Witwatersrand. Tony has worked as an independent theatre maker for over a decade and has been part of numerous theatre productions, some of which have toured and won awards the world over. His body of work includes acclaimed solo performances The Cenotaph of Dan Wa Moriri, Commission Continua, On the Shoreline and Kafka’s Ape. Tony was awarded the 2012 Brett Goldin Award and studied with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford Upon Avon. He was also an Artist in Residence at The Centre for Humanities Research based at the University of the Western Cape.

Hamilton Dhlamini, born 15th December 1969, a storyteller who produces, writes and directs for his own company NDLONDLO PRODUCTIONS which specializes in theatre, film and television stories including Woza Albert!, ELETFU MASWATI, INDABANDABA, Zakata, Blood Psalms, Shaka Ilembe, Isithembiso and DiepCity amongst others. He is a SAFTA winner for Best Actor in Soapie/ Telenovela 2018. He starred in films Faith like Potatoes, Otelo Burning and Five Fingers for Marseilles. He is also a voice artist for Castle Milk Stout.

Luc De Wit is an actor, director and drama teacher. He began his career as an actor but later worked increasingly as a stage director and since 1995 he has focused mainly on directing operas. He also teaches regularly at theatre and music theatre colleges, and has given workshops for actors, singers, directors. Luc De Wit has worked as a co-director with William Kentridge since 2005, and often revives Kentridge's productions in international opera houses and theatres. Among these productions have been Die Zauberflöte (Opera La Monnaie / De Munt, Brussels and revived in many opera houses), Il Ritornno di Ulisse, The Nose, Lulu and Buchner's Woyzeck. He was associate director of Kentridge's production of The Nose, originally seen at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York in 2010 and revived there in 2013. This production was also seen at the Festival d'Aix en Provence and at the Opera de Lyon in 2011. In 2012 he worked with William Kentridge and composer Philip Miller on the chamber opera Refuse the Hour. The following year he worked as movement director on Guy Cassier's production of Götterdammerung at the Berlin State Opera and La Scala, Milan. That same year he co-directed Die Zauberflöte with Pierrick Sorin in Lyon. In 2015 Luc De Wit and William Kentridge once again worked together, this time on Lulu, a co-production between the Met, The Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, the Rome Opera and the English National Opera. In 2017 Luc De Wit was co-director with William Kentridge for Wozzeck at the Salzburger Festspiele in co-production with Sydney Opera and The Met. He recently worked with William Kentridge as associate director and actor on The Head & The Load, which performed at the Tate Modern London, The Ruhrtriennale Festival, the Park Avenue Armory in New York City, the Arsht Center in Miami and Joburg Theatre in Johannesburg. In 2022 he directed the revival of Wozzeck in the Opera de Paris (La Bastille) and in Liceu, the Opera of Barcelona. Luc De Wit recently directed Orphée et Euridice at Gluck in the School of Arts in Gent in March 2024. In April 2025, Luc De Wit will direct the revival of Wozzeck for The Opera House in Toronto.

William graduated from Wits University with a BADA in Writing and Performance Studies in 2011. As an actor he has appeared in Castaways, Houseboy, Garry’s Retreat, Metamorphosis, Tartuffe, The Miser, CARGO: Precious, The Table and Coriolanus amongst others. His work as a playwright includes: Tobacco and the Harmful Effects Thereof, The Cenotaph of Dan Wa Moriri in collaboration with Tony Miyambo and Gerard Bester, Kings and Travels Around My Room.

Nancy Nkusi is a Belgian actress, singer, and dancer of Rwandan descent. After two years of studying psychology, she decided to pursue her passion for the performing arts and joined the Royal Conservatory of Liège’s theatre program in 2007. Since 2011, she has been involved in numerous theater and television productions, collaborating with renowned artists and directors. Her stage work includes Gamblers with Dorcy Rugamba, Hate Radio by Milo Rau, Le Dernier Testamentby French actress Mélanie Laurent, and Jungle Book by Robert Wilson. She has also appeared in La Théorie du Y, broadcast on RTBF, La Dernière Nuit du Monde by Laurent Gaudé and Fabrice Murgia, and The Great Yes, The Great Noby William Kentridge.

Eastern Cape-born Xolisile Bongwana is an accomplished dancer who is also well-versed in singing, composing, directing, acting and choreography. He worked with the UPhondo Lwe Afrika company from Port Elizabeth 2005 - 2010, and after he went to Vuyani Dance Theatre 2011 - 2017. Bongwana has had an impressive career as an artist over the past decade and a half, and his involvement in the performing arts industry has seen him work with award-winning choreographers and directors such as Robyn Orlin, Luyanda Sidiya, Gregory Maqoma, Angus Gibson, James Ngcobo, William Kentridge, Makhoala Ndebele, Phala Ookeditse Phala, and Nhlanhla Mahlangu. His impressive performance experience includes being part of the works such as 100 Years ANC Celebration, Gibson Kente, Umnikelo, Dominion, Skeleton Dry, Beautiful Us, Four Seasons, Music Tribute Hugh Masekela Celebration, Centre For The Less Good Idea Seasons 1, 2, 5, 9 and 10, and Cion. Bongwana’s composition was used for Luyanda Sidiya’s SIVA, Standard Bank Young Artist winner for Dance in 2015. He has also composed for MAKWANDE, IN HER SHOES and AMAWETHU also by Luyanda Sidiya. An artist of note, he was nominated in 2016 as part of the Mail and Guardian 200 Young South Africans, Winner of EASTERN CAPE ARTS AND CULTURE AWARD 2020 DANCE AND CHOREOGRAPHY, and 2020 Bronze Standard Bank Ovation Award winner NAF. He has been part of William Kentridge’s Waiting for the Sibyl and involved in Broken Chord by Gregory Maqoma and Thuthuka Sibisi. His solo, titled MNQUMA, which he co-choreographed with David April, has been performed at The Centre For The Less Good Idea, Pop Art Theatre, Dance Umbrella Africa 2019, Market Theatre Intubation Program, 2020 VNAF VFRINGE Program. His solo music work titled UZURI has been perfomed at the Joburg Theatre. Recently he has worked on his television debut on Shaka Ilembe as one of the Lead Vocals in Music and as Ndwandwe’s Traditional Healer. Bongwana has toured Kenya, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Angola, France, USA, UK, Spain, Canada, Australia, Italy, Holland, Romania, Finland, Luxembourg and Brazil.

Chauke started his performing arts career at the Jabavu Anti Crime Youth Aids Awareness. Between 2001 and 2005, Thulani has respectively performed for various projects with ARCO Dance Theatre, Halala Africa Theatre Society and Taelo Dance Theatre. In 2009 he joined Moving Into Dance as a trainer and later that year as a company member. In 2011 he joined Vuyani Dance theatre as a company member. 2012 through 2017, he joined Forgotten Angle Theatre Collaborative as its Community Arts Engagement Officer as well as a Dancer and Choreographer. He is currently a freelance artist. Chauke created his first solo work BLACK DOG whilst in a residency programme at the Centre National de la Danse Paris and at the Klap Maison Danse in France in 2013; this solo work has performed in several dance festivals since its creation. Chauke has performed in a number of various dance works and worked with internationally acclaimed choreographers including Gregory Maqoma, PJ Sabbagha, Fana Tshabalala, Shanel Winlock, Ivan Estegneev and Evgeny Kulagin (Russia), Iain Macdonald, Qudus Onikeku (Nigeria), Themba Mbuli, Thabo Rapoo, Gustine Makgeledisa, and Andrea Severa (Argentina). Since 2017, Thulani has been a freelance artist and working with William Kentridge in various projects curated by The Centre For The Less Good Idea: Season 1 and 4 (2017, 2018); History Of The Main Complaint (2017), originally by William Kentridge and reinterpreted by Thulani); The Head and the Load (2017/2018/2019/2022/2023) and Sibyl (2019,2021-2023), both created by William Kentridge.

A South African artist born and raised in Ivory Park and Limpopo Province, Phuti Mojela is an internationally-acclaimed performing artist, dancer, choreographer, teacher, movement director, mentor, and independent producer. Teresa Phuti Mojela plays the lead character Sibyl in William Kentridge’s Waiting for the Sibyl, which won the 2023 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera. She is a founding member and director of Phuti Pedi Productions, Children Saturday dance classes, and a Curator / Artistic Director of BASADI DANCE FESTIVAL and MOTHLANA KALANA INCUBATOR 2023 for young female/non-binary choreographers and dancers. Phuti started her acting and dancing career in 1999 at Umqhele Secondary School in Ivory Park, taught by her teacher Mrs Kwena Mphela and working with Tembisa-based Township Mirror Theatre Group under the leadership of the late Oupa “China” Malatjie. She studied dance, theatre and drama at Paul Rapetsoa’s Institute of Dramatic Arts (2005-2006), Inzalo Dance Theatre (2008) and Tribhangi Dance Theatre (2009). She has performed in Thabo Rapoo’s Sehume Tlokweng for Dance Umbrella (2009) and was featured in Luyanda Sidiya’s Indlela for Dance Umbrella with Luthando Arts Academy (2010). In 2010-2014, she became a senior dancer with Vuyani Dance Company under Gregory Maqoma as well as a dance teacher for Outreach Children’s program and Vuyani Saturday Academy. She continued as a teacher and dancer in 2015 at Moving Into Dance Mophatong. She was invited by the Holland Festival to partake and present her work in the Immerse@HF Program and she has worked with many artists such as Omphile Molusi, William Kentridge, Craig Higginson, Themba Mbuli, Bronwyn Lace, Phala O. Phala, James Ngcobo, Leila Henriques, Mwenya Kabwe, Shanell Winlock, Robyn Orlin, Sello Pesa, Vice Monageng, Athena Mazarakis, Napo Masheane, Ntshieng Mokgoro, Jerry Mofokeng, Jayspree Moopen, Margaret Mokoka, Mark Hawkins, Moeketsi Koena, Alfred Hinkel, Sylvia “Magogo” Glasser, Florent Mahoukou, Javier Velazquez Cabrero, and Eric Trufas. Phuti has toured extensively in Australia, Europe and the USA. She is a freelancer and aspiring sound & lighting technician mentored by Ntuthuko Mbuyazi, Siya Nkosi, Sibusiso Ndumndum and Oliver Hauser. Currently she is a Director & Assistant Choreographer for Ekurhuleni Young Stars Outreach Program (Children's Rights).

Polistrumentista e compositrice dalla sensibilità raffinata, Dana Lyn ha collaborato con alcune delle voci più originali della scena artistica contemporanea: dal duo di autori Stew e Heidi Rodewald agli attori-registi Ethan Hawke e Vincent D’Onofrio, dai creatori teatrali d’avanguardia Taylor Mac e Heather Christian a musicisti del calibro di D’Angelo, Hank Roberts, Bruce Springsteen, Killer Mike e Natalie Merchant. Le sue composizioni sono state commissionate da prestigiosi ensemble internazionali quali i Brooklyn Rider, il National Arts Council of Ireland, l’Apple Hill String Quartet, A Far Cry e Palaver Strings. Il suo estro musicale si è esteso anche a cortometraggi, documentari, racconti audio per il New York Times, musical e coreografie. Il suo contributo alla colonna sonora del documentario di Ken Burns American Holocaust è stato definito “sublime” dal Boston Globe. Oltre alle collaborazioni, Lyn porta avanti progetti personali come il sestetto “Mother Octopus” e lavori condivisi con D’Onofrio, il chitarrista Kyle Sanna e il poeta irlandese Louis De Paor. La sua attività è stata sostenuta da importanti istituzioni: è stata artista in residenza presso il Baryshnikov Arts Center nella primavera del 2017, ha ricevuto l’American Composers Forum Create Commission nel 2018, il NYFA Women’s Fund Award per Media, Musica e Teatro nel 2020 e ha partecipato al Sundance Composer Lab nel 2021. La sua opera radiofonica con De Paor ha ottenuto la Medaglia d’Oro ai New York Festivals Radio Awards nel 2022. Il suo ultimo album, A Point on a Slow Curve (In-a-Circle Records, 2022), è una suite ispirata all’artista visiva Jay DeFeo, composta per settetto e quattro voci, “capace di cogliere con brillantezza la tensione e l’abbandono del gesto creativo” (A Closer Listen).

Marika Hughes is a cellist, singer, songwriter and native New Yorker from a musical family; her grandfather was the great cellist Emanuel Feuermann. Marika holds dual degrees in Political Science and Cello Performance from Barnard College and the Juilliard School, respectively. She has also been a storyteller on NPR’s The Moth Radio Hour. Marika has played with Whitney Houston, Lou Reed, Anthony Braxton, David Byrne, Adele, D’Angelo, Idina Menzel, Taylor Mac, Nels Cline, The Uptown String Quartet and Henry Threadgill among many others. She has self-released three albums: The Simplest Thing (2011), Afterlife Music Radio (2011) and New York Nostalgia (2016). Marika is the founder and co-director of Looking Glass Arts, an artist-led creative residency retreat and recording space in Upstate New York, offering artist residencies on the non-profit's 15 acre property in their 100 year-old barn studio. Looking Glass Arts prioritizes artists of the Global Majority, democratizing access to the space, time and natural beauty critical to artistic growth.

Nathan Koci is a music director, conductor, and performer across multiple disciplines, including theater, folk music, jazz, contemporary classical music, and dance. His MD credits include Illinoise (Justin Peck/Sufjan Stevens), Hadestown (US Tour, Assoc. MD Bway/Citadel), Daniel Fish’s Oklahoma! (Bard Summerscape, St. Ann’s Warehouse, Bway, West End), Most Happy in Concert (Bard Summerscape, Williamstown Theater Festival), Maria Irene Fornes’ Promenade (Barnard/NYU), and Ted Hearne’s The Source (LA Opera, SF Opera, BAM Next Wave). Performance credits include William Kentridge’s new theater work The Great Yes, The Great No, as well as The Head and the Load (Park Ave Armory, Ruhrtriennale, Tate Modern, Art Basel Miami, Joburg Theater), Maira Kalman and John Heginbotham’s The Principles of Uncertainty (BAM Next Wave), and Alicia Hall Moran’s Cold Blooded (National Sawdust). He is the featured accordionist on Sam Sadigursky’s Solomon Diaries Vol I-III, and also performs and records with The Hands Free, Shovels and Rope, The Michael Leonhart Orchestra, Guy Klucevsek, and the SC-based trio The Opposite of a Train.

Asanda Hanabe is an actress, singer, dancer, and voiceover artist from the Eastern Cape. Her on screen appearances include short films, Umgoma Emoyeni directed by Mmabatho Mantsho, Isidima by Mlingane Dube, Masego by leburugraphy and TV series The Final Cut, Generations: The Legacy and The Queen. Her theatre collaborations include works directed by Mandla Mbothwe, Mzokuthula Gasa, Phala Oonkeditse Phala, Faniswa Yisa and works curated at the Centre for the Less Good Idea by William Kendrtridge. She appeared in a drama series called IDENTITY, Gqeberha, The Empire and currently appears on Nikiwe.

Nokuthula Magubane is a Wits BMus (Honours) graduate who majored in Classical vocal performance as a soprano and has a passion for classical music and the arts. Throughout her degree, she worked with vocal tutor, Eugenie Chopin, under whom Nokuthula presented her final year recital in November 2019. Nokuthula is and has been part of William Kentridge's production The Head & the Load. With the production, she has performed in New York (The Armory), London (The Tate’s Turbine Hall), Germany (Ruhrtriennale), Amsterdam (The Holland Festival) and recently at Joburg Theatre for the South African installment of the production in 2024. Nokuthula is also part of the Musorelief project, headed by Phillip Miller, which aimed to support performing artists during the tough COVID times. The project has also released an album called Reuben T Caluza The B Side, which is a collection of works by the South African choral composer, Ruben T Caluza. In 2022, Nokuthula joined the Vuyani Dance Theatre’s production titled Broken Chord and is still part of the production to date. With Broken Chord, Nokuthula has performed at Stanford University, London and New York's BAM theatre. Nokuthula had her opera debut as in The Joburg Theatre’s 2022 production of Don Giovanni as Zerlina and she is looking forward to adding more operatic roles to her name. In 2023, Nokuthula took on one of the leading roles of Phillip Miller’s Nkoli! The Vogue Opera, an opera documenting the life and time of Wits gay rights activist, Simon Nkoli. In the production, which was showcased at the John Kani Theatre in Johannesburg’s The Market Theatre, she played the role of Bev Ditsie, best friend to Simon Nkoli and lesbian rights activist. Nokuthula continues to grow from strength to strength and looks forward to a bright and fruitful career.

Khokho Madlala is the hidden face behind the lone powerful voice on DiepCity, a South African songwriter, recording artist and soundtracks lyrical composer who hails from Port Shepstone KZN, a town situated 120km from Durban. She fell in love with music when it gave her a voice, literally, because her husky voice and asthma blocked her speech. She comes from humble beginnings of a family choir consisting of 13 siblings, upgraded to local choirs at a tender age of 7 and never looked back, graduating into corporate gigs with ensembles, which led her straight to her solo career as a vocalist. Khokho Madlala’s sound is embedded in ancestral African Jazz, expanding when necessary. The sound was born from her mother and father’s love for Amahubo, Ingoma, Ubungoma and Zion. African Music experts contributed severely to her sound; for example, Madlala has performed alongside giants like Lady Smith Black Mambazo, Mbuso Khoza, Mafikizolo, and The Soil to name a few, experiences where she was often the youngest African music explorer in most work rooms her entire life. Khokho Madlala’s achievements include performances at King Shaka International Airport, the Ballroom Dance International Competition at ICC, soundtracks for SABC 1’s telenovela UZALO (2014-2016) and collaborations with Blackbrain and Mnet on soundtracks for Vula Vala, Boxing Day, and DiepCity (2019-2021). Madlala was a winner of Kumisa Industry Night (2019), 1st runner-up on singing competition MTN Megastar (2019), and a contender on The Voice - Knockouts (2018). She has performed as a part of Freedom The Musical (2018 - ensemble), Kiu (2018 - lead singer), That Night of Trance (2018 - lead singer and actress), Sarafina! (2017 - ensemble with lines), and Shona the Musical (Edinburg Fringe Festival 2022 - lead singer, actress and vocal coach). Most recently, she has participated and performed in Letters of Hope as lead actor and lead singer and Season 10 at the Centre for the Less Good Idea.

Nomathamsanqa Ngoma started her acting career in 1994 at Mdantsane Community Group in EC. She later joined the Market Theatre Laboratory as a student in 1997, graduating in 1998 as a Professional Actor. In 1999, Ngoma started performing in theatres directed by different directors, including Ways of Dying by Lara Foot, Newtown at Market Theatre and Makhanda Festival. She toured internationally and was also nominated for the Naledi Awards as Best Supporting Actress for Crepuscule directed by Khayelitsha Dominic Gumede. She has appeared in local Soapies series, international movies, and also commercial adverts. She is currently working for the William Kentridge production called The Great Yes, The Great No, directed by William Kentridge.

Mapule Moloi (Mezzo-Soprano) hails from Vosloorus, Gauteng-South Africa. She started singing at a very young age. Mapule holds a Diploma in Vocal Art: Performance; she studied voice with Mr K. Pali where she mastered various vocal techniques that allows her to switch genres with ease. She has a velvet-like tone that has rich qualities. Mapule also has a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (TUT). While Mapule was still in TUT, she sang chorus for a couple of productions at the Breytenbach Theatre in Tshwane that included Falstaff and Cosi fan tutte. She has also worked with internationally acclaimed artists like William Kentridge and Philip Miller; The Head and The Load is the highlight performance for Mapule. Mapule is also passionate about community upliftment initiatives. During her university studies, she always had interest in the planning and coordination of programmes and productions. Since 2017, she has been a voice tutor for young artists in her community. As a young woman and professional educator, being involved in community development is an epitome of the essence of Ubuntu.

Zandile (aka Zandi Hlatshwayo) was introduced to the music industry in 2003 when she met Themba Mkhize who gave her informal training. She then started working for him as a backing vocalist. He introduced her to people like Shaluza Max Mtambo and Lucas Senyatso, among many others. In 2005, Zandi joined a group called Amantombazane as their lead, which was produced by Sizwe Zako. In 2007 she joined Wadz Music Company, where she released her first solo house album called Life is a Journey. In 2009, Zandi became a member of Soweto Spiritual Singers (SSS), which is led by Vicky Vilakazi from Joyous Celebration, and they performed at the 2010 Soccer World Cup with R Kelly. Zandi also performed with Lira, Bebe Winans, Sechaba Padi, Thabo Mdluli, Jo Nina, Uche, Patrick Duncan, Moses Molelekwa jazz band amongst others.

Anathi Conjwa is a singer-songwriter, International award winning theatre maker, actor, mental health advocate and model. Her theatre career kicked off in 2017, with her start as lead in the 'Hear Me Move' musical, coinciding with her first year at AFDA University. Conjwa went on to be the co-founder of the international award winning theatre company Instusa in 2019, and has since performed and collaborated with numerous theatre productions, working in establishments such as The Centre For The Less Good Idea, The Market Theatre, Joburg Theatre and many more. Her latest work is in William Kentridge's The Great Yes, The Great No production, set to tour in the USA and across Europe throughout 2024 and 2025. The multifaceted artist takes pride in constantly exploring and inserting herself in different artistic mediums. A sojourner in the vast expanses of creative expression; holding titles within the world of pageantry. Crowned as Miss Lady Grey 2012/2013, Miss Callies 2015/2016, 1st runner up Miss Merafong 2016/2017 and in the renowned Miss Soweto pageant, 1st runner up 2020/2021. Throughout the years of 2020 and 2021, Conjwa featured in multiple advertising commercials, ranging from the FNB changeable campaign to BET, her face plastered over billboards nationwide and in countries south of the Saharan-desert. In 2021, Conjwa entered the reality music competition Idols on MNet, making it as a Top 10 finalist. Mental Health is at the forefront of most of her artistic projects. Conjwa frequently collaborates with NPOs in the hopes of breaking the stigmas surrounding Mental Health, educating and providing affordable and quality mental health care for rural areas.