Celebrated South African author, artist and activist Es’kia Mphahlele’s classic The Suitcase comes to the Market Theatre’s stage after a successful six week season in the UK.

First adapted by award-winning director James Nqcobo in 2006, the play tells the tale of a young couple Timi and Namhla, from rural KwaZulu-Natal who move to Durban to seek a better life, settling in Umkhumbane (Durban’s Sophiatown). Their plans to return to the village as wealthy successes go awry when Timi fails to get a job and Namhla falls sick while pregnant with their third child. Driven by desperation, Timi makes a rash decision to steal a suitcase that was left on a bus, putting in motion a collision course to disaster.

Nqcobo’s first adaptation of the short story won six Naledi Theatre awards and this new production features an all-star cast including Golden Horn Award-winning actor Siyabonga Twala, and original music composed by renowned jazz guitarist Bheki Khoza.