Online Reporter
Zimpapers Arts and Entertainment Hub
A POWERFUL Zimbabwean ritualistic stage play, Song Unburied, is poised to enthrall international audiences at this year’s Edinburgh Festival, taking place next month in Scotland.
Directed by acclaimed theatre guru Daves Guzha, the play reignites critical discussions about the reparation and return of stolen artefacts. Written by Panashe Chigumadzi, it features performances by Charmaine Mujeri and Dalma Chiwevera, alongside Tinevimbo Chimbetete and mbira player, Abel Mafuleni.
Prior to its showcase in Scotland, the play will have an encore run at Theatre in the Park from July 17 to 19.
This will give theatre lovers in Harare and its environs another chance to watch the star-studded cast before they depart for the Edinburgh Festival.
In a statement, the producers of Song Unburied noted the stage has been set for the play, to dazzle both local and international fans.
“Fresh off rave local reviews, the critically acclaimed Zimbabwean stage production Song Unburied is set to dazzle international audiences at the prestigious Edinburgh Festival this August.
“Before it jets off to the global stage, the play will enjoy a short encore run at Theatre in the Park in Harare from 17–19 July 2025, with performances starting at 5:30PM each evening.
“Described as ‘ritualistic and thought-provoking’ by The Herald’s Trust Khosa, and praised for its immersive set design and powerhouse performances, Song Unburied is the latest creation of celebrated novelist and journalist Panashe Chigumadzi, produced and directed by veteran theatre impresario Daves Guzha of Rooftop Promotions,” reads part of the statement.
It’s star-studded cast has won the hearts of several arts critics, who hailed it as a game-changer.
“Charmaine Mujeri and Dalma Chiwevera perform with incredible dexterity, the pillars of a tale that provides its spin on a fascinating sub-genre,” wrote 3-MOB editor, Larry Kwirirayi.
“Great play. Relevant and topical, well-directed, produced and acted — and beautifully written,” added theatre critic, John Stewart.
According to its synopsis, it was noted, at heart of Song Unburied is the story of Rambisayi Mangosho, the British Museum’s first black curator of Zimbabwean descent.
Haunted by dreams and unable to return home to bury her grandmother, Rambi is drawn into the spiritual and historical mysteries surrounding the unreturned remains of Mbuya Nehanda, Zimbabwe’s legendary anti-colonial heroine.
Guided by Tsitsi, a war veteran-turned-museum caretaker, Rambi begins a ritual journey of remembrance, resistance and reparation.
Together, they uncover a spiritual connection and a shared totem — both are vaChihera.
But as they discover Nehanda’s bones in the museum basement, they must confront the truth: the bones cannot simply be sent home — not without ritual, not without consequence.
Chigumadzi’s storytelling interweaves myth, memory and modern politics in a play that’s equal parts poetic and political.
Panashe Chigumadzi, born in Zimbabwe and raised in South Africa, is no stranger to storytelling that challenges colonial narratives and reclaims Black identity.
She’s the award-winning author of Sweet Medicine and the critically acclaimed essay collection, These Bones Will Rise Again.
She has written for The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Die Zeit and Chimurenga, and was the founding editor of VANGUARD, a magazine platforming young Black South African women navigating Pan-Africanism, queerness and Black consciousness.
As Song Unburied prepares to grace one of the world’s largest arts festivals, it carries with it the echoes of ancestral voices, the pain of colonial theft, and the enduring power of spiritual and cultural reclamation.
The production comes at a time when academic, visual artist and cultural producer Richard Mudariki, has been advocating for the return of the Zimbabwean bird from Groot Schurr Estate in Cape Town, South Africa to Great Zimbabwe.
This is the same debate the cast of Song Unburied is calling for in their play Song Unburied.
Chimbetete, who has been in the game for years, has promised theatre lovers a real treat at Theatre in the Park.
His counterpart, Mafuleni, has been teaching and playing the mbira in schools and homes. The versatile entertainer brings a wealth of experience that he will be sharing with the trio of Chiwereva, Chimbetete and Munjeri.
