Directed by Ernest ‘Ginger’ Baleni and written and performed by AFDA Creative Writing lecturer Vuyelwa Maluleke
The Blue Album is a one-woman theatre performance running at AFDA’s Red Roof Theatre from 30 April – 03 May 2026. Directed by Ernest ‘Ginger’ Baleni, a 2026 Naledi-nominated movement director and choreographer, the production draws on a physical language that shapes both the emotional and visual architecture of the piece.
At its centre is Khumo, a young black lesbian woman who returns home to Makaleng after three years away, called back by her father’s illness. Her return becomes a reckoning. She confronts the violence that forced her into exile and the intimate structures of family and community that enabled it.
The performance stages the violence of corrective rape through monologue and movement. Memory does not unfold neatly here, it fractures, loops, and interrupts. Past and present collide as Khumo moves through a shifting landscape of voices, encounters, and remembered moments. In this world, violence is not incidental. It is sustained through proximity and silence.
The work, written and performed by Vuyelwa Maluleke, brings together autobiographical writing and embodied performance. Her portrayal of Khumo earned her the 2025 Kippies Fringe Award for Outstanding Performer, as well as a nomination for Best Performance in a Fringe Theatre Production at the 2025 Naledi Theatre Awards.
Performance Details
Venue: Red Roof Theatre, AFDA Dates: 30 April – 03 May 2026
Tickets: R150; quicket link: https://www.quicket.co.za/events/361348-the-blue-album/#/
Media Enquiries
Vuyelwa Maluleke bookings@vuyelwamaluleke.com | 064 685 0973
For reduced price block bookings of 10 or more and school groups, contact Vuyelwa Maluleke at bookings@vuyelwamaluleke.com | 064685097