Market Theatre (Johannesburg)

Market Theatre
The John Kani Theatre
General information
Address	56 Margaret Mcingana Street Johannesburg South Africa 2001
Country	South Africa
Inaugurated	21 June 1976
Website
www.markettheatre.co.za

The Market Theatre, based in the vibrant inner-city suburb of Newtown in Johannesburg, South Africa, was opened in 1976, operating as an independent, non-racial theatre during the country’s apartheid regime. It is named after the site on which it stands, which was originally a produce market, also known as the Old Indian Market or the Newtown Market, which closed after 60 years of trade and relocated to another part of the city. The Market Theatre was renamed John Kani Theatre in 2014 after the renowned South African stage actor John Kani.

In 1974 a group of theatre people came together, called The Company, and included Mannie Manim and the late Barney Simon. They began fundraising to restore the neglected complex that housed the old produce market in downtown Johannesburg.

The original steel structure had been shipped from Britain and constructed on site. The steel arches and cathedral-like dome built in 1913 that housed the Indian Fruit Market were considered one of the most important pieces of organic architecture in South Africa. On Sundays, the main hall of the complex was used for symphony concerts.

Renovation began, with much of the work being done by the artists themselves. Today most of the original Edwardian architecture remains, as do a number of the original signs. It houses both Museum Africa and The Market Theatre complex.

By the 1970s there was heavy international pressure for South Africa to reform its apartheid laws. It was during this turbulent time, on 21 June 1976, that the Market Theatre opened its doors with Barney Simon as its artistic director. The first production, under his direction, was The Seagull by Anton Chekhov. In time the non-racial Market Theatre became known international as the "Theatre of the Struggle" and was one of the few places in the 1980s that blacks and whites could mix on equal terms. "The strength and truth of that conviction was acknowledged(...)In providing a voice to the voiceless, The Market Theatre did not forego artistic excellence, but, rather, made a point of it."

A multitude of anti-apartheid plays were staged, including Reza de Wet's multi award-winning, African Gothic, and Woza Albert, Asinamali, Bopha, Sophiatown, You Strike The Woman, You Strike A Rock, Born In The RSA and Black Dog – Inj’emnyama. The Market Theatre’s cultural contribution to South Africa’s emergence as a democracy in 1994 is significant.